The Sweetest of Times
by TheSilentPrincess
Summary: Killian and Emma are about to embark on a brand new journey together. One that involves binky's and diaper's rather then magic and curses. What got them here though? What's in store for them in the future? Will it be happily ever after at last? Or is it all just a hoax?
1. Introduction

**The Sweetest of Times**

**Introduction:**

* * *

><p>"Killian!" Emma's screech filled up the cottage.<p>

"I'm here, love." He cringed, thinking the entire enchanted forest just heard, as he softly shushed his wife and offered a hand. "Everything's going to be just fine."

Emma took in a sharp intake of breath as a word more suited for a pirate and not the princess that she rightfully was flew out of her mouth. "No it's not." She gasped.

"Yes, it is." Hook glanced warily towards the front door of the small cottage. People should be bursting through it any second, more specifically Emma's mother and Regina. "It always has been, love, try to relax." As he said the words, they sounded wrong. Relax? Who was he to tell her to relax when he was nowhere close to do anything that resembled the meaning of that word? You would think nine months was a long enough time to get used to the idea of becoming a father, but it wasn't. He highly doubted if nine years was going to be enough. Despite all the talks he had with Emma's father, or how good he was with Henry, the fear still gripped him that he was going to be absolutely rubbish at this.

"Relax?" Emma could barely get a word out without wincing and gripping her swollen belly. "You try having contractions, you mutinous pirate. I don't remember this hurting this bad when I had Henry."

Killian snorted. Mutinous pirate? He had heard a lot of insults come out of Emma's mouth over the years but never once had he heard that one. "It's been sixteen years since you had Henry love, you were bound to forget something." The aforementioned teenager may have had his own quick comeback for his mother, but he wasn't there. He and his grandfather had chosen to go on a week long hunting trip. They had sworn up down and sideways that it wasn't to avoid the birth, but their arguments were moot, everyone knew that they were.

"I still remember every detail from the day my little angel was born." A voice sounded a split second after the door to the cottage opened. "How are you doing, Emma?" Snow squatted down next to her daughter on the opposite side of Hook and smoothed her hair back.

"Let's just say, this is one of those moments where I wish we were still in Storybrooke so that there was access to modern medicine."

"That's where I came in." There was a chuckle in Regina's voice, and when Killian looked at her, she was smiling, standing next to the mid wife. "Magical epidural, coming right up. I would have asked Rumple to come help me, but I highly doubt that you want another man in the room besides the fact that he has to watch over Belle."

Ah yes, Rumple was going to become a father soon too, Killian thought with satisfaction. Well...again. That didn't matter though, he would still have somebody to talk to about all of this. That is unless the straw spinner took a turn for the worse again.

Emma let out a little scream in response to that which sent the room flying into action. Snow quickly left to get a damp cloth for her daughters forehead with a glare at Killian, like he actually knew to do that, as the mid wife calmly commanded Emma to spread her legs. Regina was starting to concentrate on her spell when Emma squeezed his hand tightly, sending him reminiscing about how they all ended up in this room...

**A/N: So despite this being short (it is just an introduction after all!) I hope you guys loved this. Even if you didn't, leave a review. I have never written for OAUT before so any pointers or opinions about it will be helpful. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys :) In response to them, yes I am planning to have little Neal in this story, and always planned on it from the very beginning...so hopefully that makes most of you happy. No, I will not tell the gender of the baby, you will just have to wait and see for that ;) Other then that, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Oh, and also I would like to thank A Single Star for her help with this!**

**The Sweetest of Times**

**Chapter One:**

For weeks there had been discussions on whether or not Emma would be okay with going to go live in the Enchanted Forest with her family and friends if the option ever occurred. This discussion lasted for weeks for several reasons, that all had a lot to do with Mary Margret nagging and sometimes annoying need to make sure that her daughter was perfectly alright with whatever decision that she came too. The subject was really tricky by itself though, there was just so many facets to it.

Of coarse Emma had stated long ago that she would remain in Storybrooke and not go back to New york, but the Enchanted Forest was an entirely different story. At least in Storybrooke, she was still in the basis of the modern world that she knew. She still had access to telephones and televisions and cars. The fact that she had in fact been in the enchanted forest before didn't seem to matter, there was still too many things and aspects of it that she had to get used too. Therefore that was one of the first fears she voiced, that she was afraid of it being just to much of a transition for her and especially Henry (although Henry was overly excited about every aspect of going back to his family's native land so it took some time but everybody eventually stopped worrying to much about him).

Other then that there was basically all the relationships that would and would not be severed with either choice. Emma confessed to Killian that he was one of the people stopping her from telling her mother an honest answer. She didn't want him to feel like he had to follow her to the enchanted forest, that he couldn't go his own way. Little did she know that she had already made up his mind, that he would follow her wherever she wanted to go. The Enchanted Forest? He could get used to a castle. New York? Well, he better get to learning the transit system. Even if she wanted to go move out in the middle of Texas (A very dull sounding state Henry had mentioned once) he would go. Hell, if Storybrooke was still left standing when and if everybody went back and Emma wanted to stay in the abandoned town, he would do it and be the happiest man in the world. He unfortunately wasn't the only issue though, there was still Henry to think about. Emma and Regina both wouldn't dare to make him choose between them anymore, let alone between all his other family members.

So Emma eventually became to the realization that it didn't matter at all about all the other things. Henry having everybody in his life was the most important and if that meant she had to lose Hook...well, it's not like she hadn't lost people before.

"Mom! It's not like if the first curse would have never happened, I wouldn't be living there anyways! Probably with ladies in waiting at my beck and call or whatever so can you do me a favor and stop discussing it?" She sighed one day when she came to pick up her baby brother Neil for the afternoon. It seemed to end the discussion, so that all they had to worry about was if they were ever going to get out of here in the first place.

That was nothing new though, it had been on everyone's mind since the first curse broke. It was just that it had been on everybody's mind much much more now a days. If you happen to walk into Granny's on any given day at any given hour, you will find that was what literately everybody was talking about. It wasn't because Rumple or Regina was working on a way to get them back, which is what Emma and Hook both thought when they first realized that this was happening. It was simply because life in Storybrooke had become dull. Very dull.

Emma and David hadn't even had so much as a social dispute call into the sheriffs office for days, weeks even if they were going on what Emma said one night when she dramatically dropped her shoulder bag on the floor of the apartment and flopped down on the couch next to Hook, exhausted despite her words. She wasn't lying though, days were spent twirling around on the computer chair and sometimes making sure she was awake for when Mary Margret dropped Neil off for "daddy and sister" time. Nights were spent either at her parents apartment, having a loud dinner with everyone that made her feel like she had never finally got the guts to get her own apartment because it was just to crowded, or having a quiet dinner with just Killian and Henry...or sometimes just Killian. It didn't really matter who it was with, life was content, everything she wished for for years but everything she didn't want now.

Right now content meant that all they were doing is standing by and waiting for the next villain to try to wreck havoc on them. It meant that all they were doing was sitting there wondering what loved ones would get hurt with whatever problem coming next.

In other words this version of "content" wasn't very content at all.

Emma made sure to point out to Hook that she felt guilty for complaining about it though. She had her family, and her friends, and there was nothing harming them or threatening them and most of all, she hadn't had a mishap with her magic. And then there was her pirate. Yes, he was _hers _now, completely. He had always been hers completely, but it just took him pushing himself into her apartment for her to realize it. She would have explained it to him further, but he shushed her, saying that he felt the exact same way.

"I know, love." He had kissed her on the temple and took her bag from her hand. "Me too, and if I may be so brave, your parents do too...but of course you can ask them when we go to dinner's at Regina's tonight."

"Regina's?" Emma sighed and frowned a little. She had no problem with Regina obviously, but tonight of all nights? She was tired and just wanted to order pizza, make Hook give her a foot rub, and fall asleep in front of a bad movie.

"Yes, Emma, she told me in the square today, Henry's already over there and we're expected within the next hour."

Emma closed her eyes for a moment, leaning against his chest. "Do I have time for a nap first."

There was a long pause, in which Hook seemed to think about it. "Nay." he finally answered.

"A short one? With a foot rub?" She tried.

Hook chuckled. "Afterwards." he kissed the top of her head and urged her to stand up right. "Go get ready."

She smirked a little and watched him as he bent down to pick up a pair of her discarded shoes she had left in the middle of the floor this morning. "Sorry." She muttered with a even bigger smirk, who would have thought a pirate would be this clean?

"Its okay, love." Hook disappeared down the hall to deposit the shoes into their closet. By the time he got back, Emma was still standing there. "Uh...what part of go get ready did you not understand love?"

Emma raised her eyebrows. "How long will it take you to realize I'm not like other girls, Hook? I don't need to run to powder my nose every five seconds."

"Oh, I know you are nowhere near normal, Swan...let's go." With that he offered her his arm.

* * *

><p>Killian raised his hook, seeing as his hand was wrapped firmly around Emma's waist, and knocked, or clumsily banged, on the former mayor's door.<p>

Henry answered, and Killian better have thanked his lucky stars that it was him because Emma could just imagine Regina's face when she saw the hook on her door. "Hey kid." Emma greeted as she quickly got Hook's hand off of her waist.

"Hey Mom. Hey Killian." Henry greeted before turning around and disappearing back into the living room where some action movie was playing on the TV.

"Is that the only reason you come over here?" Emma asked over the loud explosions. "Just to watch TV?"

"Of coarse not." David turned around from sitting on the couch nest to him. "He comes over to watch TV that is bigger then either of ours."

"You too?" Emma mocked disgust. "Its like revenge of the technology in here."

"Not our fault we got kicked out of the kitchen." Henry grumbled as Hook pecked Emma on the cheek and took up post in Regina's arm chair.

"Well, at least it's not football." Emma sighed as she left the boys to become zombies and entered the kitchen to find just her mother in front of the stove. "So what? Regina invites of to dinner and makes us do all the cooking? That's hardly fair."

"No. no...she did most of the cooking, I just offered to finish up while she ran out for an emergency."

At that Emma raised her eyebrows, as she leaned against the counter. "Emergency?"

Mary Margret turned around to look at her. "Yes...emergency. No, she didn't say. No, she didn't tell your father. Yes, she will be back soon and yes, she did tell me that under no uncertain circumstances that I was to allow anyone to follow her."

Emma narrowed her eyes. "Huh. Okay...well since we all know I'll burn anything I touch in here, should I just go back and become zombies with the rest of them? What the hell is dad going to do when you go back home? He's going to go into withdrawal."

"We should start keeping Henry and him apart." Snow joked.

"And Killian." Emma groaned good-naturedly. "We're going to have the biggest problem we have ever faced on our hands pretty soon."

Mary Margaret laughed, turning back to the oven. "You definitely got your sense of humor from you father."

"Who else?" Emma murmured, thinking that she had heard that hundreds of times already. Her stomach growled, reminding her that she had only had half of her lunch today, so she grabbed a biscuit of the counter and started breaking it apart to eat it.

"What are you doing, Swan?" A sharp voice cut into the couple minutes of silence.

There was a moment of frightened wide eyes, like there always seemed to be, but once Emma brought her face up level with Regina's and saw her smirk, she softened up. "Wondering what the hell you classify as an emergency now a days." she stuffed the rest of the food in her mouth, watching her carefully.

Regina's smirk only wavered a little. "Oh, it wasn't really an emergency, not a big one anyways..." She took the dishes Snow handed her and started setting the table.

Emma narrowed her eyes. "What are you not telling me? I swear if you have another long lost evil sister I am going off the deep end and there's no stopping me."

Regina rolled her eyes slightly. "No, no more sister's, I can assure you that."

"That applies to brother's too."

"Swan, just go get your pirate and the others."

She narrowed her eyes further. "Whatever it is, you wont be able to hide it for long."

"I wasn't planning on it." Regina muttered under her breath as Emma did what she was told.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**The Sweetest of Times**

Emma ended up having to go get the remote and walk and shut the TV off herself. After she did, she turned to all three of the boys disapprovingly. "Dinner's ready now. Move it."

Henry frowned but slinked off to the kitchen, afraid of both his moms ganging up on him if he didn't listen.

"Yes, Mum." Killian gave her a wink and started to follow the teenager out of the room.

Emma rolled her eyes and shook her head after him. She hardly wanted to turn to her father after that comment, but she pretty much was forced too. "So you have no clue where Regina went off to either, huh?"

David looked up at her. "Regina went somewhere?"

Emma sighed, exasperated, throwing her arms up "You can not tell me that-"

David interrupted her, laughing. "Calm down, Emma, I knew she left. I know everything that has happened in this house since I walked in. I have my son sleeping upstairs you know, I only watch theses types of movies because Henry likes them. You know, grandfather, grandson bonding time."

Emma face softened, but she narrowed her eyes. "Remember, superpower? I can tell when you are lying."

David chuckled. "Fine, fine, the explosions are pretty cool."

"Explosions aside? Did Regina tell you something?"

David shook his head. "No. She just walked right on pass Henry and me. I assumed it wasn't important."

"Not important? Dad, come on, she said it was an emergency."

David sighed. "Okay, and an emergency for Regina doesn't necessarily mean a magical emergency. She does have a...boyfriend with a child you know, who are obviously not here, maybe something's wrong involving that." He stumbled over the word boyfriend obviously.

Emma frowned. "I'm not counting on that."

"Well I am." David shrugged, starting to step past his daughter. "Come on, Emma, You know Regina, she wouldn't hide anything important from us, you need to lighten up." He touched his fingers to the side of her cheek. "Smile. Relax. I can't believe I'm saying it, but go enjoy Hook. In fact, I don't want you to come into work tomorrow, stay at your apartment, and send Henry over to your mother."

Emma looked into her father's eyes and knowing that he wasn't going to drop it, faked a smile. "Alright." she agreed. "But if anything happens, you better be calling me right away, and I'm going to get what she was doing out of Regina before I leave tonight...but just in case I can't, I'll see you bright and early tomorrow."

David shook his head slightly, walking through the doorway of the kitchen, and took a seat next the empty chair that was obviously meant for Snow.

"For you love." As soon as Killian seen Emma enter the room he jumped up and pulled out the seat next to him to offer it to her.

Emma blushed as she quickly walked over and sat. She didn't know how many times she had to tell Killian that his formalities were not needed, especially when everyone else was at ease. "Thank you." She murmured, deciding not to make a scene in from of her parents that were sure to be siding with Hook on the subject. As she took a sip of red wine while listening to Henry explain a project he was working on in school to Regina who was gathering the food, a little body suddenly shot across the kitchen.

"Mama!" Little Roland exclaimed, running and hugging Regina's leg's.

Regina chuckled, patting the boys head affectionately, while trying to balance the pan of Roast beef in her hands. "Hey little one, You and your papa are late."

"Papa said to tell you it was uncle Johns fault." Roland grinned.

Regina laughed. "Oh, was it now?" She shooed Roland to his chair next to Henry just as the great thief ambled into the room.

"He speaks the truth." Robin gave the former queen a quick peck on the cheek as he muttered hello to everyone else and sat down.

"I'm sure he does." Regina passed the meat around the table, and then sat down n the head chair herself.

"He calls you mom now?" Henry interrupted, sounding a bit miffed at the situation.

Regina paused with her fork raised half way to her lips. "What do you expect? Him to call me Regina?"

"Actually-"

"Henry!" Emma interrupted him just as Snow cleared her throat. As Henry looked at her she made the zip it sign across the table at him, already thinking that this was something they would have to discuss later if Regina didn't get to him first.

"Okay then." Henry muttered, digging his fork into his vegetables.

"Well, on that note..." Robin cleared his throat and turned to David. "How was the town today, lad any wrong doers?"

David shook his head. "No, not a thing, right Emma?"

Emma nodded, still eying Henry. Just because he was about half a year away from being sixteen now didn't mean that...

"Lass, calm down" Hook suddenly murmured into her ear, reaching his hand across to steady hers which was shaking and growing really warm. "Regina wont appreciate her kitchen burning down all because your teenage son is going through some phase or another."

He was right of course, but if Emma was being honest with herself, that was not the only thing that she was getting worked up over. Here they sit a normal (alright, not so normal!) family having a normal conversation when something not so normal was obviously happening. Alright, so she knew enough to bite her tongue while they were eating because this may be something they didn't want and/or need Henry and Roland to know, but still...that didn't do much for her boiling emotions. Nonetheless. She smiled a little at Hook and continued to eat like nothing was wrong. She had to keep one burning hand beneath the table on Hook's lap though, which honestly seemed to delight him greatly, as the other was loosely clutching her fork, hoping Regina didn't have a strong attachment to her silver.

"Papa's teaching me to read." Roland announced happily in the middle of a conversation Hook and Robin were having.

"Oh? Is he?" Regina beamed.

Roland nodded, and seemed happy with that, turning back to his food.

"What book is he teaching you to read?" Snow asked.

"Well, he just teached me my name today but tomorrow he says he has this book." Roland nodded happily. "Hat the Cat."

Henry snorted into his drink.

"Taught." Snow corrected. "And I think you mean The Cat in the Hat."

"Yeah, that." Roland ate the last bite of his meat. "Do you have cake, momma?"

"Wait until everyone else is done Roland." Robin scolded, causing him to pout.

"That was the first book I taught Henry how to read." Regina remembered fondly.

Henry scowled, not liking that.

"He was a smart boy, picking it up rather quickly, maybe if you ask him nicely, Roland, he can help you learn."

On any other day, Henry would jump at the idea. He jumped at any idea to help out his family, but today wasn't any other day apparently. "I don't think so, Mom." He said in a tone that sounded like it could have been dipped in acid and not only that, he made sure to empathize the word Mom.

Regina opened her mouth at the same time Hook cleared his throat. "Would you like for us to step outside, lad?" He challenged.

Henry brought his gaze up to Hooks and then immediately looked back down. "No." He muttered.

Hook nodded and then gave Regina a look. Everybody in that room knew that Hook was just going to give Henry a stern talking to, while everybody else would assume...well nobody would really like to think about that. Hook just had a way with Henry, maybe because Henry had always looked up to him or maybe because it was the whole pirate thing, or maybe it was just the fact that they were both boys. Whatever it was, Henry cleaned up his act right away when Killian got involved, and Emma, at least, was highly thankful for that. She highly doubted there was any manuals on how to deal with your pubescent teenage boy in the Storybrooke library.

"Sorry, Mom." Henry muttered just before Snow and Regina got up to clear the plates.

"That's alright, Henry." Regina responded over Roland clapping his tiny hands and yelling "Cake! Cake! Cake!"

* * *

><p>Regina did indeed have a chocolate cake garnished with strawberries, that Roland disclosed happily that he helped her by earlier that day.<p>

"So what did we owe this great pleasure too anyways?" David asked as he put his last forkfull in his mouth.

Regina exchanged a glance with him. "Henry? Can you and Roland take the rest of your dessert to the living room? Turn on that movie?"

Henry barely looked up, and everybody could just see the gears turning in his head thinking of whether or not to argue. He decided against it though and took both of the plates and the boy into the other room.

Regina seemed to viably relax once the two boys were out of sight, but didn't start again until after she heard the television turn on. "I found a way to get back to the enchanted forest."

There was a couple beats of tangible silence followed by a lot of "Whats?" and "Excuse me's".

"I found a way to get back." Regina repeated calmly. "Rumple and I. Well, we have a pretty good plan to try to do it in any case."

"Bloody Hell, when are we going to learn our lesson?" Hook slammed his hook down on the table (not the point on first of course, not even him would have liked to deal with the consequences of ruining Regina's mahogany table.)

Reginas eyes flashed to him. "We are all aware of your refusal to trust Rumpelstiltskin and we could go around the table asking everyone whether or not they have trust in them, but that would be beyond the point. He's not going to do anything. He just simply gave me the idea, and without even his knowledge I might add. So am I allowed to go on without anymore angry outbursts?"

Emma expected Hook to come back with a smart ass comment, but he just nodded. "You may."

Thank you." Regina nodded and then looked at everybody, eyes resting on Emma. "You are going to do it."

"Me?" Emma echoed, sounded slightly outraged. "Have you been here for the past few years?"

"That was then, this is now," was Regina's response.

"With no quantifiable differences." Mary Margaret interrupted. "And I think I speak for everyone in this room when I say that the lack of risk lately has been nice. We don't need to break it and risk our daughter in danger. And besides the fact, was this why you ran out on us before dinner?"

"She has more powers now." Regina challenged her step daughter, not answering her question.

"She had more powers, for a long time now Regina." David pointed out.

"We've been distracted!" Regina slammed her fist down on the table. "Or did all of you forget that?"

Everyone exchanged a glance as Robin jumped to quickly calm Regina down.

"Sorry." She muttered after she collected herself. "It's just that all of you are so quick to shoot this down when ever since the first curse broke this was the major goal."

"Your asking us to risk our daughter...when we already have once before." Snow frowned.

"I believe she can do this!" Regina exclaimed, looking right at Emma who was trying to look everywhere except in people eyes, mind reeling.

"How?" Robin calmly asked, butting in.

Regina seemed flustered for a moment. "I...I have no idea." She admitted softly. "Atleast none that everyone's going to completely understand. I'm going to have to work with her, unless our dashing gentlemen here no longer trust me. We can work together and find a way. Magic has a funny way of telling us answers sometimes. Now I understand that it has been said that we have been here so long now, it seems like home. I understand that, I do. But I also know that Robin here would not be opposed to having Roland grow up in his home, and not to be contained to just one little...spot on a map. And Snow, you want that for Neal too, I know you do. I know it hurts that Emma didn't grow up in her rightful home, so your want for your second to is all that much stronger. Emma has already told me her opinions on the matter and I want nothing more than to help right the wrong I did, so maybe my heart will fix itself just a bit more," She glanced at Robin when she said it. "So please, _please_ tell us you agree."

"Except it's not really up to us." Killian began carefully. "It's up to Emma." He gave David and Mary Margaret a look.

"It would be up to me." Emma agreed, finally looking up at everyone.

"Well, yes..." Snow shrugged. "But..."

"I am the savior." Emma cut her off. The word "am" in that sentence sounded foreign on her tongue, maybe just because the sentence normally was "I was the savior." She looked at Killian and offered him a small smile before she went on. "And its seeming like it's a life long title...when do we start?"

**A/N: So it has come to my attention that theses chapters are pretty short. I'm going to start making them longer, I promise. :) As for Rumple, Well, I started writing this before I saw last Sunday's episode, so just keep that in mind. **


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon A Time. **

The night ended without anymore talk of the impeding plan, since they didn't want Henry and Roland to know quite yet. Emma knew that wasn't going to last for long though, Henry would find out someway to find out what they were up to, and if she was being really honest with herself, she completely thought he had a right to know. She understood Roland though. Roland was what...four? He wouldn't understand and probably would get frightened, so she did what everyone wanted and kept her lips zipped as she helped Regina wash the dishes. Not only all through that, but all through the hour more everyone piled into the living room before going their separate ways and then all the way through their goodbyes. Well, almost...

"If you don't show up at the loft sometime tomorrow, I'll be very very angry." Snow hissed in her ear, as they hugged tonight.

"Noted." Emma responded, bending to kiss her brother on the forehead.

"I'm serious."

"I don't doubt that." Emma muttered under her breath as she went to hug her father goodnight.

"Don't listen to your mother, I'll calm her down tonight. Just talk to Killian, okay?"

"Of course." Emma agreed, not knowing which parent it would be in her best interests to listen too.

"Meet me tomorrow in my vault?" Regina asked after the Charming's left.

"If I could be in three places at once? Maybe." Emma rolled her eyes.

Regina frowned. "Emma-"

"I'll figure it out, Regina, Always do." She said as she turned away and sprinted to catch up to Hook and Henry who already started on their way back to the apartment.

"What was going on back there, kid?" she fell into step with Henry, ignoring Hooks hand offer.

Henry looked up at her. "What are you talking about?"

"Emma raised her eyebrows, sighing, not believing that Henry was really trying to pull this. "Cut the crap, Henry. I used to be the queen of teenage angst. Remember? Orphan?"

Henry stared at her for a few seconds and then blinked. "I'm really just tired, Mom, seriously." Then without giving Emma anytime to respond, he picked up the pace all the way back to the apartment, which wasn't far in the first place. "Good night." He barley even muttered before he shut the door to his room firmly.

"Maybe that is all it is." Hook muttered quietly. "Teenage angst."

"Yeah, and he doesn't have anything to angst about." Emma took her frustration out by starting to loudly put the dishes away in the dish drainer. "He has more than enough family. He has a house...three of them! And...what? He's mad because I still make him attend classes? Tough shit."

Hook stood there watching her with raised eyebrows. "First of all, those bowls did nothing to you. Love, second of all...and it may have took a man to realize this, so in no way am I trying to say...well, anything," he cringed away from the loud bangs the bowls were producing, wondering if it was really a good idea to tell her this or not. "But while the lad does have all those things, he also has one more that you didn't list... he is now faced with the task of having to share his mother."

He doesn't have to share me." Emma protested. "And he doesn't know about the plan Hook, so unless he can suddenly see the future..."

"Ah." Hook held a finger up. "Not you. His other mother."

Emma turned to look at him, with a bowl half raised in his hand, a bowl that he vehemently hoped wouldn't get thrown at head. "Oh, right. His adoptive mother that started an affair with a married man?"

"That you brought back from the enchanted forest when you knew you were not supposed to?" Killian being the smart man that he was stepped away when responded with that.

"You didn't stop me!"

"There was no time!" Hook exclaimed. "And that's besides the point!"

"Besides the point? You are the one that brought it up."

Hook sighed. "I was just merely pointing out that the boy now has to deal with someone else calling his mother, mama. I would think it would come as just a bit of a shock, don't you?" He raised his eyebrow at her. "Now what you need to do is put that bowl down, and get in the shower to start relaxing. You are stressed out about more than just your son, Emma, I can tell."

Emma did what she was told and set the bowl on the counter, walked to the living room and then proceeded to unzip her boot, pushing them to the side. Then she seemed like she was going to start a staring contest with Hook.

"Good job, love, you're halfway there." Hook encouraged statistically.

"You know what? Screw you."

"No thank you." Killian chuckled, and walked towards her, scooping her up easily. Please don't hit me." He winced away.

"I'm not going to hit you." Emma mumbled, softening up a little, being in his arms. "Regina maybe. Maybe even my mother...but not you."

"Now we are getting somewhere." Hook mumbled half to himself as he back up and deposited them both on the couch. He remembered getting pulled to the furniture store to pick out the damn thing even though he told Emma countless times that as long as he could sit on it, and it was even halfway comfortable, he would be a happy man. Emma had insisted though, obviously disagreeing with the pirate way of life on the particular subject, and they ended up picking out a tan one with plump cushions. "Now Regina I can, half, understand, but Snow? What did your mother do to you?"

"That's easy." Emma readjusted herself so that she was cuddled into his chest. "sitting at the table in front of Regina."

Killian looked at her, confused.

"Nevermind." Emma grumbled, "you'll find out soon enough, but for now can we just stop talking about everything?"

"Anything." Hook finally agreed, kissing the top of her head, thinking he would just get it out of her tomorrow. He figured as long as magic wasn't threatening to destroy the apartment, he could wait until then.

Emma muttered something in response that Killian didn't hear and lapsed into sleepy silence.

Killian, all to happy to have her actually sleeping, wherever it may be, smiled and grabbed a his hardback covered book that he had left on the coffee table that morning and started reading. He barely got three pages in when there was a knock at the door though.

He scowled up at the door and then glanced down at Emma, who's eyes fluttered open a little. "It's fine, love, I'll send them away." He gently moved her off his lap and crossed the floor to open the door, wondering just who exactly needed them at this late hour. If it was Rumpelstiltskin he might just murder him right then and there. As he looked through the peephole though, he saw quite the opposite of the dark one. "It's Snow." He almost growled out, knowing without even having to get told that he almost had to let her in now.

Emma sighed and straightened, as her mother stepped through the entryway. "Mom! It's late." her voice was clear that she wasn't to please.

"Yes, I know." Snow unwrapped her scarf from her neck. "And I wasn't sure if you would be up, but you answered the door so you had to be and-"

Emma didn't listen to the rest of her mothers words, instead focusing of Killian who gave her a look that said to murder anyone and who walked as quietly as he could behind the half wall of the kitchen. "Yeah, that's fine, but is your cell phone broken?"

"What?" Mary Margret was obviously caught of guard.

"Your cell phone?" Emma asked again. "It has to be broken, because if it wasn't you would have just called me."

"And you would have just ignored the call!" Snow exclaimed. "I know my daughter and I has to talk to you!"

Emma took a deep breath, trying not to lash out. "Okay, fine, you're here now, what was so important that you couldn't wait until tomorrow? Where's David and Neal?"

Snow smiled, pleased that her daughter was willing to talk and went to go sit down in the armchair. Meanwhile, Hook turned the water on full blast in the kitchen. "You're father and Neal are fine, and what choice you are gonna make of course. It's a big decision with lots of things to discuss. I don't think you realize everything...are you ready to be the princess? That's what the people will look at you as, especially the people who didn't get swept up in the first or second curse."

"So you have said. Thousands of times!" Emma wasn't even entirely sure why she was so irritated. Henry was a reason, like Hook had said, and she was exhausted, but she knew her mother was going to do this. She even fully expected it even. She just was nowhere near the mood for it. "You know this is why I finally bucked up and got my own apartment right? So I could have my alone time without people barging in here. You should be asleep, Mary Margret! We should be asleep!"

Snow looked hurt. "Emma..."

"No!" Emma interrupted. "Seriously, you did not have to walk all the way across town in the cold late at night just to ask me if I was ready to be a princess!"

"It's hardly all the way across town!" Snow defended over loud dish clanking from the other room.

Emma huffed. "Well I don't wanna be a princess!" She snapped.

Snows face instantly morphed into one that looked as if someone just died. "Okay." She agreed softly after a long period of silence. "If that is what really feel...okay." She got up and gathered her scarf. "Good bye Killian." She politely said and then let herself out.

The water stopped as soon as the door closed and Killian walked to throw the deadbolt. "Do you know how much you just hurt your mother, Swan?" He asked her, coming to stand in front of her in the living room.

Of course Emma heard him, and of coarse she knew that her comment did in fact hurt her mother, and even though she did not regret it at that specific moment, she knew that by the time she woke up tomorrow, she would. Even still, she didn't answer him.

"Bloody Hell, Emma!" Hook snapped, looking angry after it became clear that she was ignoring him. "I know that you are tired, I know that your sons being a pain in the arse, I know that these past couple years are catching up to you, and I know that what Regina just proposed is huge, but you hardly need to act like a teenager about it."

"I'm the one acting like a teenager?" Emma narrowed her eyes at him. "I wasn't the one that choose to skip all the way across town just to ask me if I wanted to be a princess or not! She could have texted that!"

"No." Killian bluntly told her. "You're just trying to avoid it."

"Avoid what?! Yeah, sorry, I completely do not want to have the "princess" conversation with my mother right now, or...ever really. Alright, so fine, I am Prince charming and Snow Whites daughter. Those are facts. I can't change that. If she wanted to come running over here to say that I probably wouldn't have said anything. It's also a fact that I am a...role model for these people, and I do have royal blood I guess. But here's another fact for you, I have no desire to be a princess. I have no desire to wear dresses and live in the castle and lead people. That is a fact and if she doesn't like it, you know as well as I do what she can do with it. Is that really acting like a teenager, Hook? Telling the truth? And if we can leave my son out of this tonight, it will be greatly appreciated. I will deal with him tomorrow."

Hook stood there listening, trying to keep calm and trying to really understand her, and it only took a couple of moments of thought before he did. "No." He slowly answered her. "My apologies, Swan, You are not acting like a teenager."

"Thank you." Emma slowly got up and tried really hard to smile at him, not that it worked.

"But you are doing something else." Hook stepped one step to the right to block her from going down the hallway where it was obvious she was going.

"What?" She frowned. "I'm going to sleep, Killian."

"Well then maybe when you wake up you won't have your damn wall up anymore." He said it softly, in a way that he hoped she wouldn't get mad at.

You could hope all you want, but that didn't mean you would get what you hoped for.

"From teenager to wall? What next? Two year old?!" Emma exclaimed.

Killian winced. "Well if you keep yelling in my face, it may come down to that, yes."

He had never seen Emma Swan so angry as he did then.

"Well if that's the case you better get me a fricken pacifier!" She seethed. "Because I am sorry if I...have this whole town that I need to take care of. I am sorry that on some days nobody can even tie their own shoes by themselves! I am sorry that I have parents who missed the first twenty-eight years of my life. I am sorry that I have a son who I don't know how to deal with now...I..." She groaned out of frustration. "Just get out of the way Killian and let me go to my room, please?"

Killian sighed. At least she did lower her voice for that last bit. "No...I think we still need to talk...about a lot of things " If there was one thing he wasn't going to do ever again it was backing away from Emma Swan. If he let her go now...well, he knew her to well, and the night wouldn't end up pretty.

Little did he know, it wouldn't end up pretty anyways.

"Hook! I swear if you do not move right now I will hit you." Emma threatened.

This time, Killian decided to stop aside. He would just follow her to the room. It would save a bunch of yelling that if it didn't already wake up Henry, it was going to soon.

Emma didn't even bother to thank him as he blew past him and flew down the hall, shutting the bathroom door tight behind her.

Killian shrugged, intent on going to the master bedroom and getting the bed ready for Emma to soften her up a bit, but as he passed Henry's door, he noticed that the light was still on, and made the split decision to check on the boy to see if he had heard anything. "I'm coming in." He rapped his knuckles on the door a few times, and after a few seconds of no response, cracked open the door.

"Henry?" He ended up asking to an empty bed. "Henry!" He exclaimed when he quickly found the window opened. "Emma!? You might want to come in here."

* * *

><p>Henry raised his hand to knock at the door. He could have just walked in, and that's what he normally would have done, but this time...this time it seemed wrong, like he might be interrupting something. Actually, he felt pretty confident that he was and if nobody answered the door withing a couple minutes, he would walk away and probably end up going to his grandparents for the night.<p>

Luckily, within seconds, Robin opened the door and looked down at him with a surprised expression. "Henry? I thought you went home with your mother and Hook."

"I did." Henry adjusted a backpack on his shoulders. "But now I'm back." He stepped around Robin since the last thing he wanted was a full conversation with him. He started heading directly for the stairs, not seeing his adoptive mother anywhere on the main floor. "I wont be any pain though, I'll just be in my room until morning." He told him and began climbing the stairs, and then picking up the pace into a sprint as Robin begun responding. He had no patience to deal with hos mothers boyfriend tonight, especially if he thought he had a right to tell him what to do. He liked Robin well enough, and still liked to think he had a major part in getting his mom and his together in the first place, but when Robin started acting like his father...it was time for it to end.

Neal was his father. His father was dead. Everyone knew that so he really shouldn't have to explain it any further.

As he got to his room, the door was closed, which was weird, because normally Regina would keep it open so that it didn't get musty. Besides, he was up there earlier looking for something and could have sworn that he didn't shut the door himself. He shrugged it off though, and opened the door, stepping in and closing it behind him. He dropped his backpack to the floor and flipped on the light, heading towards the bed.

"What the hell?"

Now normally if he cussed in front of anybody, except maybe Hook, he would get his head bitten off and they would make it seem like he was worse than the snow queen, but nobody was in the room to hear him cuss this time, unless you counted the little dark-haired boy buried in the blankets of his bed.

"Bright..." the boy mumbled sleepily.

"What are you doing here, Roland?" Henry demanded, frowning.

"Sweeping." Roland started at him, squinting in the light.

"Yeah, I can see that!" Henry snapped. "But why?"

Roland seemed to ponder this briefly. "I tired," he shrugged. "And Mama told me I could."

Henry frowned deeper. What gave Regina the right? This was his room! "Okay." He nodded. "My mom may have told you that before, but now I'm back home so you need to get out."

That just earned him a confused look.

"Come on, Roland! Out." Henry patience was wearing thin as he watched the boy rub his eyes and stare at him. "I'm tired."

Roland then proceeded to do something that would have been very cute, if Henry wasn't in whatever mood he was in. He scooted over, and patted the spot beside him. "Then we can sweep."

"We could." Henry agreed, except it doesn't quite work that way. Let's. Go." He walked over and tugged at the boy's arm until he was halfway out of the bed so that he slid onto the floor with a thump.

Roland promptly opened his mouth to give a wail, and then before Henry could react, he was on his feet and bounding out the door. "Mama!" He wailed. "Papa!"

Henry was about to go after him, but then he decided against it, shrugging and opening his backpack to get the comic book he was reading out. He barely opened it though, when high hells were heard walking down the hall and his mother appeared at his door. "Henry Mills!" She exclaimed right away. No "Henry! You're here. Why didn't you tell me?" just yelling at him right away. "What gives you the right to wake Roland up and kick him out of bed, how would you like if someone did that to you?"

Henry blinked. "Its my bed."

"That you weren't suppose to be using tonight!"

"But I am using it now."

Regina sighed. "Yeah, I can see that. You came bounding in here without even so much of a hello. You are more than welcome to come here every night if you want, you know that, but I expect you to have the common courtesy to say hello and to not wake people who happen to be sleeping!"

Henry rolled his eyes. "But he was in my bed, Mom. In my room!"

"Then sleep on the couch! Or the other spare room. I don't know what has gotten into you, Henry, but you can be assured that I will be talking to Emma about it."

"I'm sure you will." Henry muttered. "I'll be on the couch." He went to go brush pass her with his comic.

She didn't try to stop him and as he got downstairs with the intention of plopping himself down on the couch, he ran into Robin trying to console the still crying Roland.

"Henry's mean." he sobbed, rubbing his eyes.

"Shhh he didn't mean it. Do you wanna sleep here next to daddy for a bit?" Robin offered.

Roland shook his head. "I'm not tired no more!" He exclaimed

It was then Robin caught sight of Henry and gave him a glare, because it was obvious Roland was tired.

"He can go back upstairs." Henry grumbled. "My mom made me come down here."

Robin shook his head, turning back to his boy. "Do you want to go back in the big bed?"

"No!" Roland shouted. "No no no no! I want to play! And Read!"

Robin gave Henry another look that he thought was uncalled for. "What if Henry apologizes? And then goes upstairs to sleep with you? Will you be tired then?"

Roland seemed to ponder this for a moment, before he finally nodded.

"I am not sleeping with him!" Henry exclaimed.

Robin looked at him with a sigh. "Well, I think you should at least apologize to him."

Henry blinked at him. "Yeah, because he was in _my _bed in _my _house, and I should be the one who apologizes, maybe when Storybrooke freezes over."

* * *

><p>By Mary Margret shut and locked the door to the loft, she had collected herself to the point that she was confident that David wouldn't realize that she was crying. She dropped her bag on the floor, exhausted, and ready to climb into bed with her husband and forget everything that just happened. She should have known that that wasn't going to happen though.<p>

"Shhhh." David put his fingers to his lips. He was on the couch, holding a sleeping Neal in his arms. "I just got him to go back to sleep."

Mary Margret forced a smile and went to sit by them. "He woke up? Was he hungry?"

David shook his head. "No, he just knew his mother left."

Snow frowned. "I had to talk to her." She softly admitted.

"Emma?" David slowly re adjusted himself so that he could look clearly at his wife. "You couldn't just wait until tomorrow?"

Mary Margret bit her lip as David sighed. "Snow, shes thirty. Shes not our little girl anymore, don't you think it could have waited until tomorrow?"

Snow's eyes burned into his. "She will always be a little girl."

David realized his mistake as soon as he said it. "Yes she will ." He agreed with her. "But nothing warranted you sneaking out of this house to go interrupt her to talk to her about things that could have waited until tomorrow. Mary Margret, do you realize that you probably interrupted her thoughts?"

"I had too, David." She whispered again, not knowing what else to say or even how to explain it. She just had too. She wouldn't have been able to sleep if she hadn't.

"Yes but why, Snow, I mean...its not like we haven't talked about this before, all of us. Were you afraid that now that Regina made it real for for her, for us, she would try to leave?"

Mary Margret didn't know it until he said it but that's exactly what she thought. She didn't nod or anything though, but instead just watched him carefully.

David sighed. "She has too much to lose. She wouldn't sacrifice Henry and Killian."

Snow made a noise in the back of her throat, almost starting to cry again.

"She has too much to lose." he repeated.

"How do you know?!" The whole trying not to cry thing came out as anger. "She had too much to lose before, yes. But now? David, we hardly know her at all. I mean, we think we do and then something happens that make us all wonder if we really did."

"Of coarse we know our daughter." David responded. "As much as we know our son."

"Do you want to know what I know about our daughter? That her first reaction...even now is to run when things get hard, and she always needs one of us to remind her of who she really is."

David could not deny his wife that her statement was true. He frowned. "So you went over there to remind her."

Snow nodded, pleased with that answer.

"You didn't trust Killian to be able to do that?"

This time Snow frowned. If she said yes she would seem like a monster but... "I'm her mother." She whispered.

"And I'm her father." David told her. "Sweetheart, I am not trying to yell at you or say that you were completely wrong for doing it, I'm just saying that you might want to think it through next time, and then tell me where you are going."

Snow blushed a little at the last part, but she still nodded her head. "No, no, you should yell at me, David because I made it worse."

"Maybe, maybe not." David shrugged as he readjusted Neal.

"No, just maybe." Snow corrected. "Actually I know I did. David...I don't think she is going to do it."

"Did she say that?" David did a little bit of a double take.

Snow shook her head, the tears starting. "She said she didn't want to be a princess."

David groaned, but quickly tried to disguise it has clearing his throat. He should have known his wife was going to pull this one sooner or later. She just got to excited about certain... things.

"David! She already went off on me! I don't need it from you!" By now the tears were falling, and she raised her voice just enough so that Neal whimpered, waking up a little.

"I am not going off on you." David exclaimed in a hushed voice. "I'm just saying that, agin, you should have known that would freak her out."

"Like she;s never thought about it herself." Snow sobbed.

"Oh, I'm sure she has." David answered. "Which is what it should have been kept at for now, don't you think? Until she brought it up?"

"If I know our daughter, she was never going to."

"And if I know our daughter she would have eventually came to us." David told her seriously. "And don't tell me I'm wrong, because if I know you, you will agree with me after a good night's rest." He got up with their son and offered her his hand.

She looked away, debating on taking it.

He sighed. "Come on, Snow, you're fighting with Emma, do you really want to fight with me too?"

She looked up at him and as soon as she did, he smiled, causing him to take his hand after brushing some tears away.

**A/N: Hoped you guys loved this! I am very happy with the amount of follows I'm getting and I can only hope that I'm making this story good enough for you guys! Thanks for all of your reviews, follows and favorites and please, if you have a suggestion, don't hesitate to drop a review! I especially want to thank Asinglestar again for all her help with this! I couldn't do it without her. **


	5. Chapter 4

Regina watched the events play out from the foot of the stairs, and when Henry disappeared through the door, she couldn't seem to unfreeze her feet to follow him. He was probably running off to his grandparents, she thought. He probably came from Emma's, not liking what they were doing for the night, got angry at her, and now the most logical place for him to be was the Charming's. Wasn't it?

She didn't get much more time to answer her question, as her phone started ringing from inside her pocket. She numbly reached and answered it without even checking who it was. "Regina Mills."

"Regina?" Is Henry there?" Came Emma's quipped voice from the other end of the line.

"He was." Regina answered simply right away.

_"Was?"_

Regina nodded, like Emma could hear her. "He just...got angry with me and stormed off. Wait, you didn't know he was here?"

"No, Regina, I didn't." There was hurried footsteps and the queen could hear the pirates voice in the background. "He thought jumping out our second floor apartment window was more preferable than his mother where he was going. And then his other mother decided not to tell me either."

"I'm sorry!" Regina sighed over Roland that was still crying. "In my defense, I thought you knew, and I had other things to deal with here."

"Yeah, like your new family?" Emma came back with. "You know what? Don't worry about it Regina. Its okay. I'm sure I will find him. I know you have more important things to worry about."

Before Regina could respond, the phone went dead. She scowled, swallowing her words and put it back in her pocket. Taking a few steps into the room, she stopped by Robins side. "See if you get him to sleep in my bed tonight. I have to go do something." and then she was out the door before she could look back at him.

* * *

><p>"I am such an idiot!" Emma exclaimed, walking to the door and shoving her phone back into her pocket.<p>

"Regina not telling you he was there makes you an idiot?" Hook asked, holding out her coat, having already been ready at the door after he re shut and locked Henry's bedroom window.

"No, I'm an idiot for not realizing he was gone in the first place." Emma accepted his offer and slipped her arms into the coat. "Or for not making him stay out here and talk to me." After she zipped up, she started looking for her boots. "Or for ever trusting Regina with him. I'm not sure which, but I'll be sure to get back to you."

"Here, love." Hook held the boots out, chuckling a little at her.

"I'm still mad at you." She snapped, taking them.

"Well can we pause that to go look for the lad?"

Emma raised her eyebrows. "I'm pretty sure I can be mad at you and Regina and look for my son at the same time."

Hook chuckled some more, turning the doorknob. "This isn't her fault, love."

"Actually, I thought we already have been through this, it's really my fault, I'm just hoping to think it's Regina's fault." If anything, Emma was truthful. "Wait...who side are you on anyways?" She narrowed his eyes at him, going through the door.

Hook stepped out in the hall and held his hands up. "Hey, I'm not on anyone's side, I'm just simply saying that there must have been a reason that he escaped out apartment in the first place."

Emma sighed. "Yeah, and I'm afraid he won't tell me even if we do find him."

"Once we find him." Hook corrected. "And of course he is, you are his mother."

Emma looked at him strangely. "We you even around today? Because if you ask me, that was not a really good track record."

Hook could not deny that she was right. "Emma, he has two moms, somethings bound to come up to somebody."

Emma did not respond as they walked out into the brisk cold night.

"So have you called your parents yet?" Hook asked when they were already halfway down the street.

"Huh?" Emma was lost deep in thought.

"The Prince and Snow, did you call them yet? Or are we planning on ignoring that Henry could be there?"

Emma sighed and frown. "Yeah and if I see my mother in the near future, I am going to murder her."

Hook raised his eyebrow. "Fine, your wish is my command, I'll go see if he might be there. You can go to Granny's and see if he might be with Ruby."

Emma nodded and started walking away, but then as Hook's words sunk in, she doubletook. "Wait, really?"

Hook smirked. "Of course, love, if it will keep you out of jail. Although, on the other hand if you murdered them both, they'll be nobody to arrest you. "

"Thank you," was the only thing Emma could think of to say, seeing as she could not find it within herself to crack a smile.

Hook nodded. "But you do know your going to have to face them sometime." He pressed his lips gently to hers, knowing there was a chance he would get slapped away, but was willing to take it.

She smiled into the kiss slightly, not being able to help herself this time. "Still mad." She muttered.

"Oh, go forth and find your lad." He chuckled and turned away to start walking to the Charmings.

When he arrived, he knocked on the door, making no attempt to be quiet, if anything, just to prove a point.

"Killian?" David answered, looking quite worn out.

"Sorry it's so late." Hook apologized without meaning it.

David shook his head. "Nevermind that." He stepped outside and shut the door behind him in order not to disturb Snow and Neal. "Whats wrong? Emma?"

"Henry." Hook corrected, earning a concerned look from David. "Is he here?"

His face did not let go of any concern. "No." He shook his head again . "Why would he be?"

"Long story." Hook frowned. "And I could sit here and explain it to you, but I'm afraid that would just be wasting time I don't have if I'm going to find him. Just do me a favor and call me if he happens to show up?"

David frowned at him. "Sure." He nodded. "Of course, but if my grandson is missing, I'm going to help you find him." He made a move to start down the hall.

"Ah!" Killian held out his hook as a warning to get him to stop. "I don't think that's a good idea mate."

"And why not?" David frowned, avoiding the hook.

"If you haven't heard Emma's not to happy with you."

David frowned even deeper. "Me? What have I done?"

"Well, not so much of you then your wife, but I don't think that's really going to matter to her, strangely enough."

David sighed. "I am not going to take sides about it. I know Mary Margret freaked her out. She just gets excited, you know? That and she is trying to make up for twenty-eight years, she just can't help herself."

Hook raised his eyebrow again. "I'm not the one who needs to hear this." He shook his head. "And your wife may have just lost your free ticket out of this place."

"She's that against the idea?" David seemed surprised.

Hook looked at him and gave a little shrug. "Can't really tell you. She won't talk to me."

David sighed and finally backed away from the hook completely, leaning against the wall. "but you are the only one she does talk to these days."

"Not anymore, I'm afraid." Hook gave him a small smile. "Actually, now that you mention it, we were fighting after her mother left our apartment. Fighting! That may be why the boy escaped actually..."

"Fighting?" David frowned and then sighed. "I wouldn't worry to much, Killian. She loves you, I can see that. You'll work it out."

"Ah, but not if I can't find the boy." Hook pointed out.

"That may put a damper on things, yes." David nodded and then sighed. "I should stay here with my son anyways. Just call when you find him alright?"

Hook nodded and then started walking away.

"Oh and Killian?" David asked before he turned the doorknob, causing the pirate to turn around. "Tell Emma to try that old playground he used to like to go to to be alone."

Killian nodded and turned around. "His castle? Thanks." He smiled to himself.

* * *

><p>After a quick voicemail to Emma, telling her that her parents hadn't seen Henry and he was going to keep on looking, he started towards the old playground Emma had once showed him. The one she said Henry and her were at when they had their first real motherson moment. David was right, he would be here if not anywhere else. This was the only place in Storybrooke that really meant anything to him when he felt alone and with the fact that the boy seemed pretty pissed off with everyone...Hook assumed he felt pretty alone right now.

As if not to scare him off if he did happen to be there, hook snuck up to the shadows of the playground equipment, squinting in the darkness for a figure. Just as he was about to give up and turn back, not even completely up to it, he spotted a figure sitting on top of the slide, swinging his legs of the edge. He thought about reaching into his pocket and telling Emma that he found him, but quickly decided against it, thinking that would be chickening out. " H-?" he got out just as another voice called out.

"Henry?"

Regina.

Hook should have walked away to leave them to have a moment, but for some reason something was telling him not to. As he watched, Henry looked up startled. "Mom." He did not sound to pleased. "Why are you here?"

If Hook didn't know any better, Regina rolled her eyes. "Emma called. She said you ran away...and then you ran away from my house..."

"Oh...Emma called." Henry sounded sarcastic.

Regina sighed. "Fine, your mom."

Henry snorted. "That is not what I'm talking about." he grumbled, climbing off the slide.

Regina moved in front of him at the bottom. "I don't think so, you are gonna stay here and talk to me."

"Talk?" He snorted again.

"Yes! It's what you do with your mouth! Come on, Henry. At least I wanted to find you, at least I thought to look here first!" Honestly, Regina just sounded irritated.

"I seen my jacket, mom." Henry responded with a sigh, which made Hook look around confused, when he finally spotted the jacket that was in a heap on the ground on the backside of the slide.

"So what? I used a potion to find you faster!" Regina sounded desperate.

"Emma would have known to find me here without a sticken potion." Henry snapped and quickly ducked out of her way and took off running in the opposite direction.

"Henry!"

"I don't want to talk to you." Henry called back. "Hasn't that been obvious?!"

Hook couldn't believe his eyes after that. Regina just stood there and watched him go.

Good thing pirates were good at tracking.

Actually it wasn't that hard. It was late and he suspected Henry didn't want to waste energy evaded his mother when he couldn't hear her pursuing him, so he fell down at the base of a tree.

"Do you wish to talk mate?" Hook stepped out of the shadows and sat besides him, making him jump. As soon as he did move, He flung his arm out in front of the boy in case he wanted to escape. "Because otherwise we are going to sit here in silence until I decide to call your mother to say that we are coming home."

"You were following me the whole time!" Henry exclaimed outraged.

"Shhhh!" Hook hissed. "I mean except if you actually want Regina to hear us and therefore find us, which is, by all means, up to you."

Henry crossed his arms.

"Silent brooding then." Hook did not remove his arm, but stretched out so that he was more comfortable. "Although I must say that Emma is smart enough to find us at some point. And then there is a little problem that I was requested to call your grandparents once you were found..."

Henry frowned, looking at him. "They know I'm gone too?"

"Your mom was worried, I was too. Of coarse we went there looking for you." Hook told him like it was nothing.

"Oh." Henry whispered.

Hook looked at him. "So would you like to tell me why you felt the need to escape out the window? That must have been some fall."

"Not really, grandpa taught me how to always land on my feet." Henry shrugged.

Hook almost chuckled. "Yeah, from what? The top of picnic tables when you two were sword fighting with sticks?"

Henry gave him a dirty look. "I landed perfectly fine."

Hook looked at him. "Still kid," he thought adopting Emma's name for him would make him feel more...comfortable? "You are not normally like this, nothing near. Would you like to tell me what's going on?"

"Kid?" He raised his eyebrows.

"Yeah, it sounded strange for me to say too." Hook chuckled.

Henry nodded. "Yeah... Can you please get your arm out of my face?"

Hook shook his head. "Not until you start talking."

Henry huffed.

Killian sighed, glancing up at the full moon. "Come on lad, we used to be...whats the word they use today...tight?" He had heard it on the television before and hoped it would make Henry smile. "I used to be cooler then your grandpa? Don't you remember that?"

Henry chuckled. "Of coarse I remember."

"Then what happened?" The older man lowered his arm. "You are really worrying your family and your mother has enough to deal with."

Henry sighed. "I know!" He kicked at the dirt. "I heard. And its causing everyone to fight! My mom is not suppose to be fighting with Snow White. I mean, listen to that sentence, doesn't that sound just a little bit wrong to you? Nobody ever fights with Snow White!"

"Except Regina?" Killian cocked an eyebrow. "I have to admit I could have guessed that but I also have to admit that you were acting like...well... don't force me to say it lad, long before your grandmother came to our door."

Henry leaned back against the tree. "So...you want me to explain every single thing wrong?"

"Well, most of it...if you want to go home."

Henry looked at him with wide eyes. "You can't do that!"

"I'm a pirate...I can do anything I want." Killian was half joking.

"Mom wouldn't let you!" Henry exclaimed.

"She does not know where we are, so keep joking, lad."

Henry would be scared if not for the gleam in Killian's eyes. "Roland was in my bed." He grumbled.

Hook nodded, knowing his suspicions were true. "So you got jealous."

"NO!" Henry exclaimed, thinking that sounded really childish. "It was just my bed."

Killian chuckled at him, he couldn't help it. "Jealous. Don't worry, your mother is too. And to be fair, Regina had no knowledge that you would be spending the night, so how would she know to keep your bed free?"

"I am not jealous." Henry grumbled again, but then Hook's word's sunk in. "Wait, you think mom's jealous too? Why would she be jealous?"

"I don't know." Killian shrugged. "I haven't got the chance to hold her up against a tree and force her to talk yet, I've been too busy tracking you down."

Henry would have chuckled at the slight amusement in his voice, but he couldn't find it within himself. "You two were fighting after Mary Margret left."

Killian nodded, already pinpointing that was when he decided to make his great escape. "Yes...but I'm afraid that's what couples do every so often." He bit his lip in thought. "Your mother had a really bad...day, I'm assuming."

Henry frowned. "It seems like everybody had a bad day. And I thought it would get better after Regina told you guys about the enchanted forest, because everyone gets to go home now, but instead everybody just got mad at each other."

"Wait, how do you know about that?" Hook raised an eyebrow at him. "Last I knew Regina sent you out of the room to make that announcement."

"I eavesdropped." Henry looked down, finally looking a bit like his normal self. "But only because it seems like you guys never tell me whats going on anymore! Like as soon as mom started dating Robin, I'm all of the sudden grouped with a three year old and my thoughts and opinions don't matter! It's all "Henry, do this," or "Henry, do that," and leaving me in a comer to rot. All the while, while someone is calling my mother mom and now my whole life is getting uprooted and nobody thinks to ask me! And then I thought that maybe Mary Margret was coming over because she thought that she forgot to ask me, so I listened in on that conversation too but then she just left! After mom got mad, she just left! She didn't even say my name! And then of coarse that's when you two started fighting and I went to Regina's...but I should have known better. She has her new family now, she can hardly be bothered with me."

"She came to look for you." Killian pointed out, half surprised that Henry just told him as much as he did. "and that says shes too busy with her new family?"

Henry gave him a look. "Who's side are you on?!"

Killian couldn't help back chuckle. "Whats with you Swan people tonight? I'm just simply stating that if what your stating is true, she wouldn't have bothered to come look for you, even with the potion."

Henry shrugged. "She probably just did it because it looks good." He mumbled. "She would much rather spend time with Robin and Roland."

Hook raised his eyebrows at him. "But you were the one that helped her find Robin."

Henry shook his head, willing to allow him the mistake. "Yeah, but that was when I didn't know that it was going to be like this! She would have her happy ending, but still love me! I didn't know I was going to be replaced!"

"Replaced?" Hook repeated with a look of confusion. "Is that what all this is about? That you are being replaced by her?"

"Henry bit his lip looking down. "Well, isn't that obvious? And not just by her! But...Emma has you now...and Robin thinks he can boss me around like my dad, and hes not!"

Killian tried to bite his tongue about the Emma comment. "You're mother and I...we're hardly anything new."

Henry shifted. "So? Its different now! Before we were all living in the loft, all of us, without you and it was...good. Now, you moved in with us when we moved which means you are getting more serious about each other and..." He trailed off, shrugging.

"And your mom doesn't have time for you?" Hook guessed.

"Maybe." Henry allowed, shrugging.

"See? That's a lie lad, because she still has all the time in the world for you and I think you know that. I think I know the real issue here, and so I'm going to tell you this right now, I am not trying and will ever try to replace your father." Killian had suspected it for a long time now, honestly since Neal had died in the first place.

Henry looked at him and bit his lip. "Really?"

Hook nodded. "Of coarse lad, even if I wanted to I wouldn't be able to replace Neal...Now, that does not mean I still don't have the right to yell at you when you acting like a scoundrel."

Henry gave him a look.

"Don't tell your mother I just called you that, She will have my head for dinner." Hook chuckled.

Henry nodded and even chuckled with him.

"And I really do not think Regina is trying to shut you out. Roland just recently lost his mother and I'm sure he doesn't mean nothing by calling Regina that, but even if he did, think of it as a honor. That you have the best mom in the world, so much so that everybody wants her. I really don't think Robins trying to be your father either, and in his defense you were acting extremely not yourself tonight. I know I am not them though, so I suggest actually talking to them about it, instead of terrorizing lad's younger then you."

Henry nodded. "I will." He promised, "But what about Emma fighting with her mom and all of that?"

Killian went to start getting up. "That? Well let's go home and let you opinions be hear for that one." He offered Henry his hand, which the boy promptly took and stood up. "Also so we can all get some much needed shut eye, eh?"

Henry nodded and yawned to demonstrate the pirates point.

Killian chuckled and opened his phone to answer the three missed calls he had from Emma. She was going to be even more pissed at him, but it was worth it.


	6. Chapter 5

Emma was waiting outside the apartment when they got back, shielding herself from the wind. As soon as she saw them walking up the street though, she sprinted up the steps to the lobby and they found her inside by the steps with her arms crossed.

"You could have just waited inside, love." Killian told her, heading to put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah well, you could have answered your phone when I called, but that didn't seem to happen either." She snapped and started up the stairs to their door, ignoring his attempt.

"Point taken." Killian muttered and gave Henry an apologizing look.

Henry shrugged and adjusted his backpack on his shoulder as he followed his mother up the stairs and through the doorway into the tangible silence.

"I think we all earned a bit of sleep, eh?" Killian finally was the one who broke it and the first one who stepped away from the door into the room and flipped on some light other than the little lamp by the door that they always kept on.

Henry adjusted his backpack again as Emma let go of a tiny sigh, glancing at Killian. She glanced back at Henry just as soon as she did and let out a little unrecognizable noise, throwing her arms around him. "God kid, don't do that to me again," she commanded into his hair. "From the way things have been going tonight, I thought you were dead."

Henry hugged her back. "I'm sorry mom, I won't."

"I was so scared." Emma told. him again, unwilling to let him go, but she became aware that the boy was yawning. "Killian's right, its bed time, we can discuss it in the morning." Even as she said it though, she made no attempt to move other than reaching behind him and taking his backpack off for him.

"Mom?" Henry eventually was forced to ask.

"Yeah, go." She tried to fake a chuckle at herself. "I don't have to have Killian guard the door all night, do I?"

Henry shook his head. "Goodnight Mom. I love you."

Emma smiled. "Love you too, Henry." After she watched him take the backpack from her and disappear down the hall, she turned to KIllian who was just finishing up calling the Charming's and Regina. She listened to him ending his conversation with Regina, and watching him pace around the kitchen, and just before he bid her goodnight, she decided to follow her son down the hall and into the master bedroom. She kicked her boots off, leaving him lay in the middle of the floor, as she immediately shed her coat and pulled her arms out of her t-shirt, kissing the shower she was going to take before Killlian found that her son was missing goodbye.

"Undressing in front of a pirate...isn't that on the list of the top ten things _not_ to do?"

Emma cringed, she should have known he would have followed her, he wasn't really good at picking up at hints sometimes for a pirate. She picked up her nightshirt from the night before, quickly slipping it on. "There." She turned around, as she was unhooking her bra and letting it fall down and then slipping that completely off, a trick she had learned from the locker rooms of High School gym class and a trick that confounded the pirate.

"I know you are not sleeping in those jeans." Killian pointed out.

"You know whats bad about letting you move in here?" Emma asked, completely ignoring him. "No alone time."

Killian sighed. "Fine, I'm sorry that I missed your calls." As he spoke, he slipped his own coat off and went to hang it in the closet. "But I had him and we were sitting there talking, I didn't want to ruin it by answering the phone. I knew you wouldn't have listened to me when I said I got it. You would have come anyways and he would have stopped talking."

As he spoke, Emma kicked her jeans off angrily. "Oh, so now I don't listen to you?!"

"Swan, I know you and you would have wanted to come."

She snorted. "Well, other than that he is my son and I should have had a right to come..."

"Emma! He talked to me. I know whats going on with him, isn't that all that matters?"

Emma opened her mouth to respond, but then she thought about it. "H-he actually told you?"

"Yeah." Killian shrugged, pretending not to notice her obvious surprise. "Why wouldn't he? I am a big part of his life."

"Are you trying to say that I'm not?" Emma was right back to her annoyed voice as fast as it went.

Killian sighed. "Emma..." He paced about the room for a while, thinking of a way to put it. "No, I am saying that tonight, that's what he felt like. I am saying tonight he only talked to me because I happened to give a damn and look for him without a potion. And, while you know that I love you, and painfully so, I can not say that I blame him. You are tired and stressed, I get that. You don't want to be a bloody princess, you have told me that before. But you know what you do? You buck up and face the music as they say in this world. You don't take it out on people who has nothing to do with it that just wants to help, and you wake up tomorrow morning and have a bloody conversation with your son that involves the words enchanted and forest."

* * *

><p>Emma woke up the next morning blurried eyed. She had got maybe two hours of sleep, and that mainly at a lot to do with the whole princess issue, but also the fact that Killian was not laying beside her. He had stormed out after his little monologue, well, maybe storm was not the right word, but even still, it was his eerie calmness about walking out that affected her the most.<p>

The first thing she did once she decided just laying there all day was not going to help anything was checked her cellphone where she found a voice mail from Mary Margret that she just erased and a text from Henry.

Killian said not to wake you up, and I had to get to class, so if you want me to meet you at station later I will.

The words stung, They reminded her of the last thing Killian had said to her the night before.

Sure, that would be great, kid. She texted back, sealing her fate.

She had been so mad at Regina the first day that Henry had came home to show her his shiny new cell phone, but now she had to admit, it was probably a good idea. Well, if he would remember to take it with him half the time, like last night. Emma had spotted the phone laying on his bed side table still when they first discovered him missing, so of course she knew not to bother, but she could not help herself in wondering how many missed calls he had from Regina.

Killian said not to wake her up, she quickly realized this meant two things. First of all it was already later than she thought, and second of all, Killian was still in the apartment.

Could she face him this morning? I mean, what were her choices really? Staying in bed all day? While that would be nice, if she actually slept that is, it wouldn't be conducive and it would get to the point where Killian would wake her up concerned anyways.

She sighed as she pulled herself up from the sheets and checked the alarm clock to see if she wanted to risk taking a shower before she showed up at work. Seeing as the clock read that it was ten to nine, she decided against it and just grabbed a fresh pair of jeans and a sweater from her closet and slipped them on along with her boots. She made sure to shut the door with a tiny thump so that Killian would hear so that he could make his own choice about running into her when she ran to the bathroom. She managed to brush her teeth rather quickly, but when she picked up her hairbrush to brush her hair, it flew out of her grasp and into the open toilet.

"Damn it!" She cursed, immediately grossed out from the fact that now she had to reach in and grab it.

She did quickly, trying not to think about it, and deposited it in the garbage, washing her hands afterwards sulkily running her wet hands through her hair, gathering it up in a really messy ponytail. If she still lived with her parents, she would have just borrowed Mary Margret's brush, but living with two boys did not give her that option. Not that she would have been borrowing her mothers anything right now, but that was besides the point.

She grumbled as she walked down the hallway, planning on heading straight for the table that she always dropped her car keys on. She did, bluntly ignoring Hook that was doing something or another in the kitchen, but as she reached down to grab them, she felt nothing.

"You have to be fricken kidding me!" she exclaimed out loud.

"Emma?" Killian asked.

She turned on him, not so much angry as flustered, but it could have easily been perceived that way. "Where are my car keys?" She demanded.

Killian looked at her strangely. " They should be on the table, love."

"Yeah, except that it's obvious they aren't." Emma sighed walking into the kitchen. It was then and only then that she smelled the unmistakable smell of something burning or something that was previously burnt. She raised an eyebrow.

"I was trying make breakfast and you know...this bloody thing..." He mumbled the last part and stepped aside so that she had a full view of the griddle on the stove with evidence of pieces of burnt pancakes on it.

Emma almost laughed, but not quite. "So you tried to burn the apartment down."

"Only until Henry got up and banished me from the kitchen." Killian admitted. "So I did not burn down the apartment and I tried to make breakfast for you, love. The fact that the evidence is still here and the fact that I got bested by a fifteen year old and modern technology...again should not be a factor here."

"Fourteen" Emma corrected. "His birthday is not until next week, and ….just have this cleaned up by tonight, okay?" She started towards the door without waiting for him to respond.

"Wait, where are you going?" Killian objected.

"Where I always go." Emma paused to take one last scanning look for her keys.

"Without your car?"

Emma shrugged. "I can walk, my legs aren't broke, knock on wood, and plus David should have his truck if we have to go on any high speed chases, which if we should, I'll be sure to call you. Plus, you say love too much for this early in the morning."

Killian chuckled and let Emma slip through the door without another word, using context clues that she did not want to be messed with. Although he couldn't be sure if the hair was done intentionally or not.

* * *

><p>It took her about twenty minutes to walk from her apartment to the station and on the commute, she surprisingly did not run into anyone, which she was thankful for. She did not have the patience to pretend everything was normal and especially e when she passed the pawn shop, she did not want to deal with Belle's understanding smile or Rumple's threatening stare. Well, at least assumed Belle was going to be there. Things with Belle and Rumple had been...strange lately, mainly due to the way Belle was and her overly compassionate heart. Don't get her wrong, Emma was all for second chances and true love, but especially in "Beauty and the Beasts" situation, something just had to give. Then again, maybe she only thought that because she had spent months trying to avoid anything to do with the whole situation and it was her loves heart that he stole that made the whole situation come to light.<p>

_Your true love, _a nagging voice in the back of her mind sounded. She mentally scowled at it. Part of her believed, _knew_, it was true and that's what made the other part of her so afraid. It was alright when it was just casual, when she knew Killian was pursuing her and she was desperately trying to keep her wall up. It was alright when she had decided not to fight it and actually do the things like kiss him in public and go on dates (the memory of the first one still had the power to make her blush, and she still had the rose he gave her magically preserved in their bedroom) but it started getting, well, not alright on the day that she had finally decided that her parents and baby brother deserved to have more room so she was going to move out and Killian started hinting around that he couldn't stay at Granny's forever.

It had been a long and hard battle, eventually one that Emma had lost obviously. First her excuse was that she was only looking for a two bedroom which was perfectly reasonable...until Killian had to come back with that he would just sleep on the couch if she was that opposed to sharing a bed with him. She had blushed about that, not wanting to hurt his ego or the relationship, so therefore she made up an excuse that it would be far to hard to explain to Henry why exactly they were sleeping in the same room. Killian had countered that by pointing out that they have been staying with David and Mary Margret for long enough now that Henry had to notice that they slept together in the same bed. Emma just rolled her eyes to that, and snapped that they were married, that it was a difference Henry understood. At that point, her mother butted in that Henry was surely old enough, Regina had Robin staying at her house now, and basically that Emma needed to stop acting like an infant, and let this happen. Shortly after that, the point came that Emma had no more excuses and so the day that she got the keys to the new apartment three blocks away from the Charming's loft, it was three sleeping on the floor because they hadn't got the beds yet, rather then just two.

She had to admit that the morning on the second day when she awoke to his arm around her it was a nice change. Henry had let them sleep in and they found him sitting at the island in the kitchen eating the cold pizza from dinner the night before. "You guys are cute." He told them, offering the box to the pirate who had pizza for the first time the night before and loved it. "So I was morally obliged not to wake you."

Emma didn't even ask why he had started using that phrase.

That was almost three months ago though, and from that day there was even more everyday situations that had Emma in a whirlwind of emotional distress about the whole true love thing. Everything from when Killian and her sent Henry off to Regina's to shop for a new queen sized bed, which seemed a lot more intimate without him, to dinners at her parents house, which Killian was not in any way obliged to be at, but somehow he always was.

Wherever Emma went, Killian went. Whenever Emma was hurt or even sick a new side of Killian came out that she had never seen before and would stay until she felt better (And there was no lying to him either, she had tried that.) Whatever Emma wanted to do, Killian was all for the idea and whenever there was just something just slightly off with her life, he was always there to play superman, or in this case, super pirate. On the other hand though, as Mary Margret gently told her when they were discussing it one afternoon, all of those statements were equally true even if you flip-flopped the statements. Wherever Killian went, Emma went...and so on. True love, her mother had said matter of factly and she would know. When Emma pointed out that the chances of a product of true love meeting her true love, Snow straight up refused to listen, turning it completely around saying that it just ran in the family. Then again, she may be right, it made sense, but Emma found it much preferable to try to just not think of the subject. That didn't stop her from laughing at the horror on her mother's face when Regina had offered to conjure up some curse to put on Emma so that they could know once and for all.

"You'll know, sweetheart. You will feel it. Do you feel it?" Snow kept asking her.

Well she was sorry to disappoint her mother, but she had never thought about it that much to know, and today wasn't going to be the day that she knew either.

"Emma!" David seemed surprised when she yanked open the front door to the station ans stepped in.

"Yes, I know, I'm late. Rough night, as you knew." Emma shrugged and started looking around to see if her keys were there. Although she wouldn't know why they would be considering her yellow bug was parked in front of the apartment, but stranger thing has happened.

David nodded, eying her. "Yeah, How's he doing? Killian called last night to say that he was home with you two, but he didn't really go into much detail."

Emma shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, good I guess. He left for class before I got up this morning, but I guess Killian had a talk with him." She gave up looking and sat down in her chair.

David nodded. "That's good. You're lucky that you have him to help out."

Emma nodded a little, not wanting to get in a fight with her father right now and no matter what she said in response to that, she had a feeling that it would happen. "He is coming here afterward, so you can see him if you want." She pressed the power button on her computer, while wishing she had stopped at Granny's for a cup of Coffee.

"Sounds good." David responded awkwardly.

Emma knew the two things that were itching to come up the most was what Regina had offered them and what happened with Mary Margret. She was also counting on the fact that David had enough common sense to not bring either of them up, so therefore she settled down for the longest day of her life.

"Actually as I recall you aren't even suppose to be here."

Emma sighed. "Well, I'm fighting with Killian and I'm mad at Mary Margret, where else am I suppose to go?"

"Regina's?" David suggested.

This time, Emma turned around a looked at him with narrowed slits. "Don't even go there." She warned. "And right now I am so exhausted I doubt I could even stir the cup of coffee that I wish I had right now with my magic."

"If you're that tired, Emma, go home."

"Can't, Henry is expecting me to be here." It was a perfectly logical excuse.

"He has a phone doesn't he? Call him and tell him to just come home. Either that, or he will show up here and I can give him a ride." David sighed. "Seriously, Emma, you are making everything hard."

"Or maybe." Emma started, trying not to roll her eyes. "I can just sleep in there." She jabbed a finger towards the cell. "Because that is much sleep I am going to get anyways."

That seemed to shut David up for a while so she turned back to her game of solitaire, enjoying the peace and quiet. Well, that is until the door banged open suddenly.

Both David and Emma looked up with a start. "Granny?" Emma raised an eyebrow.

The old woman looked...frightened and panicky plus Emma knew as well as anyone that she didn't leave her diner unless it could not be helped. "It's Red." Even her voice sounded flustered. "She's gone missing!"

**A/N: There we are, some action before they leave Storybrooke! Aren't you all excited? Leave me a review and let me know what you think or where you think she is. Also, I'm thinking about writing some bonus scene for you guys too, so you will have that to look foward too. As always, thanks for all who reviewed, followed, or favorited! You are all amazing!**


	7. Chapter 6

**A/N: All mistakes are mine. Sorry for them!**

David jumped from his seat right away to go and console the old women. "Are you sure?" He put a comforting hand on her shoulder and led her more into the station.

Granny nodded as she tried to push her glasses up unsuccessfully and straighten her cardigan. "Yes, she never showed up for her shift today."

Emma sighed to herself, closing out of her game. "Well, let's be honest with each other here, when you put her on first shift she has a habit of being late for it."

David shot her a warning look, but Granny nodded agreeing, "Why yes, I understand that, but I left someones in charge of the diner and went to look for her and she wasn't at home either."

"Is it possible that she just didn't want to work today so she's somewhere else?" David asked, "Like maybe at the school or someplace?"

Granny looked at them both with frightened eyes. "I- I hope so, but I cant be away from the diner for long so I was hoping you two could look for her for me?"

As she was speaking, Emma was already putting her gun that she pulled out of her holster earlier back in. "That's what we are here for." She looked at her father.

"Yeah, of course." David walked to his desk, grabbing his car keys. "We'll give you a ride back to the diner too."

"That would be marvelous." Granny nodded, "but if you are too busy don't worry about it. I'm sure she will turn up." She was eying Emma as she said it.

Emma winced. Did she really look that bad? "I"m sure my game of solitaire can wait, and if it can't, I was losing anyways." She rolled her eyes as she led them out the door and out the the truck, opening the passenger side door and pausing to survey the situation. David truck could fit three if it was David, Henry and her or even David, Mary Margret and her, but in this situation, bushing the old women in between would just be cruel. "After you." She indicated Granny should get in the passenger seat and after she shut the door, Emma went around and hopped up in the bed. It would be a cold and blustery ride, but the leg room would be worth it.

And it was, despite the fact that they were at the diner in less than five minutes and Emma, who had almost fallen asleep within that short amount of time with her head propped up against the back window swore she was getting hypothermia. Despite all this though, she barely wanted to hop back into the cab after David helped their passenger out of the truck and down the sidewalk.

"God." She shivered as her father arrived back in the truck. "You would think Regina would have thought about not having winter when she made this town."

David chuckled. "I think that was the least of her worries." He turned up the heat more for his daughter. "Maybe if you would keep track of your keys more often..." He knew better than to finish that statement.

"It's better for the environment." Emma shrugged. "Plus it saves me gas money. Damn it! Which reminds me, I'm going to run in and get some coffee. You want one?"

"You buying?" David joked as she opened the door.

As she entered the diner, it was basically empty for just starting the lunch hour. There was a few people at the tables outlining the building, but other than that the building looked pretty much dead. "No, we didn't find her yet, we're not that good." She tried to joke to Granny, but it fell flat. "I just need coffee."

Granny nodded. "Of coarse, I should have guessed that." She turned her back and quickly started running the coffee machine, automatically filling up two cups instead of one.

"Thanks." Emma nodded as she slid them onto the counter. She barely reached into her back pocket for her wallet before Granny was shaking her head. "No. No. Emma. How many times do I have to tell you. It's on the house. Just go and find my granddaughter."

Emma smiled, nodded and took the steaming cups and ducked out the door. It was the first good thing that happened all day and she hoped the good luck would last. "The school." She told David after she handed him his cup. "Granny mentioned it and I don't know about you, but I don't know where to else to start."

David nodded. "No offense, but you don't look like you know where to start on anything."

Emma rolled her eyes. "Aren't we done with the exhaustion jokes by now? I mean, come on Dad, if Regina wants me to work with her on making a portal or whatever the heck, I can surely find a bratty teenager."

* * *

><p>"Tell Emma you were wrong."<p>

Regina glanced up to see Mary Margret pushing Neal down the street in his stroller. "Excuse me?" She put a hand lightly on Roland's head to make sure he didn't go running off into the street to meet them as they were crossing the sidewalk.

"Tell her that you don't think that you can accomplish what you...thought you could." Snow couldn't even say it now despite Roland being right in front of her happily licking at a chocolate ice cream cone.

Regina's confusion was clear. "But I can...?" She said it was a question. "Well at least I have a pretty good feeling that we can."

"Yeah, but that doesn't matter now." Neal started to fuss just from that short time of standing still, so she beckoned Regina forward as she started walking again.

Regina sighed. "Why? Because correct me if I'm wrong, this has been the goal from the beginning, has it not?" She matched her pace with her stepdaughters and tried to keep her voice down low. They were in the middle of town, and she didn't need the whole town knowing.

Snow sighed watching as Roland peered happily down at her son. "Home is where your family is."

"As everybody keeps saying." Regina nodded, wishing Snow would just come out with it already. "But if everyone goes to the Forest, home would be there."

"Your family too." Snow quickly interjected, just as Roland tried to give Neal a fingering of ice cream. While Neal was getting old enough now to eat those types of foods, it still got all over his face, which made Roland howl with laughter.

The two women chuckled and Roland took that as encouragement, going to give him another finger full. "No. No more Roland."

"But he likes it." Roland whined.

"That may be." Regina allowed. "But he doesn't need a sugar high, so if I catch you one more time, we are going back to your father."

By the look on Roland's face, he did not want that to happen.

"Awww."Snow laughed.

"His father is hunting." Regina shrugged. "While he loves his father, he apparently loves ice cream more, plus I had to promise him last night in order to get him to go to sleep."

"Bribery?" Snow asked raising an eyebrow.

Regina opened her mouth to defend herself.

Snow laughed. "All mom's do it...Didn't you do it with Henry?"

Regina shrugged. "I suppose, a little bit, but that is the point. I"m trying to be a better Mom then I was to Henry."

Snow gave her a reassuring smile. "You are. Look at him. He is as happy as a peach, and besides you realized your mistakes with Henry and fixed them, you are not very likely to repeat them."

_If I fixed them, why did he run away from me?_ Regina thought this but stayed silent for a while, looking inside the front windows of the business's they were passing. "Speaking of mistakes..." she started again carefully. "Explain to me again why you want me to lie to your daughter?"

Snow sighed. "It's not lying..."

Regina looked at her. "Uh...last I checked, saying that you can't do something when you can is lying and I would have thought you would be the one who knew that the most."

"You hope you can do it." Mary Margret corrected.

"Technicalities." Regina rolled her eyes. "Come on, tell me, I am not in the mood for games."

"She said that she doesn't want to be a princess!" Snow cringed as she said it.

"So you talked to her, and she said she doesn't want to go?" Regina raised an eyebrow.

"Well..." Snow began, bending over to check Neal to bide time. "I talked, she...yelled. And not in so many words. She said exactly that, she didn't want to be a princess."

Regina looked at her, letting a couple beats of silence pass, in which Roland tried to feed his ice cream to the baby again, only this time, it went ignored. "I don't want to be a princess doesn't mean I don't want to go to the Enchanted Forest."

"Not in so many words." Snow gave. "But Regina! She yelled it! You were not there. Nobody yells at their mothers like that. Plus She and I and even you know that if we go back, we are royals. I'm sorry, but shes the princess by blood. Fine, maybe all of us can not see her that way. But the people who escaped and never came here and met her? She is going to be their lost princess, and nobody can do anything to change that."

Regina could not deny that she was right. That's the way the forest worked and she knew that Emma would not appreciate it if they just taught the others to think of her as "savior" either. "Be that as it may," She allowed. "You, Snow White, want me to lie to your daughter?"

"I said-"

_"Technicalities!" _Regina interrupted. "The answer is no, Snow, I'm sorry."

By this time, the two women had walked all the way to the Charming's loft, as they stopped outside of the door. "So what? Emma's going to have to tell her herself?"

Regina nodded. "Precisely."

"But that's the thing, she won't. If she thinks everybody else, especially Henry wants the opposite, she won't go against us."

Regina nodded. "Yes, I'm quite aware, but I'm also aware that you are her sometimes over bearing mother and she yells things at you just to get you to leave you alone." She sighed, glancing away from Snow's hurt face. "Me on the other hand? I might get a different story out of her and I intend to find out if I do. I'm Sorry, Mary Margret, I really am." With that she beckoned to Roland and walked off.

* * *

><p>By the time Emma and David got out of the truck, Emma had already guzzled her cup of coffee and was wishing that she had more. "Let's get this over with." She said as she made sure the truck was locked and looked up at the gloomy sky. "Them maybe I'll take a late lunch and stay at home. Killian shouldn't be back until later and the leftover Chinese in the fridge is calling my name."<p>

"Now you are talking sense." David chuckled and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We will Sweetheart, don't worry." He then lead Emma up to the main entrance of the school and inside.

They caught the kids just when they were all out in the hallways coming from recess or wherever they just happened to be, so as they weaved in and out of them to get to teachers, they got several looks of awe, which Emma tried to ignore. Yes, she was a hero to theses children in more ways than one, but she just didn't feel like dealing with this fact today. After what seemed like an eternity, they stepped into the office, and David stepped in front of her to talk to the secretary, flashing his sheriffs badge needlessly. Emma was more than happy to let him do an interrogation for once, so she sat down in one of the chairs out in front and crossed her legs.

"Has Ruby been here do you know? Red?" David asked the women in a hushed voice only for the women to shake her head.

David sighed. "Are you sure? Maybe she just didn't check in today?"

This went on for a couple more minutes, but the answer still turned out to be no. By the time that it was, the coffee had made its way through Emma so on the way out, she stopped at one of the student bathroom to relieve herself. David made fun of her saying that there was an adult bathroom inside the office, but she simply refused to go in there, saying that it was just too weird,,,,even for an almost thirty year old.

What she wasn't prepared for though, is a group of girls who were standing in front of the mirrors when she opened her stall door. They were playing with each others hair and talking excitedly to one another. Emma listened closely and it did not take long for her to realize that they were obsessing about what it must be like to be a princess. "Come on guys, off to class." She started to usher them out of the room, frowning.

"Emma!" one of the girls grinned up at her and she soon realized that it was Gretel.

She only wished she could return the grin. "Back to class." she nodded at the girl, and because she was the sheriff they listened and scrambled out the door. She followed them, and spotted David talking to Henry outside.

"Mom!" He immediately turned to her. "Why are you here? Grandpa won't tell me."

"That's because you just walked up." David muttered, eying the girls that Emma just shooed out.

"He has a point." Emma returned the one-armed hug her son gave her. "Shouldn't you be in class?"

"Shouldn't you be at work?" Henry eyed her and took in her exhausted featured. "I'm just kidding, I was on my way to the library and wondered why grandpa was standing in front of the girls bathroom."

"Like there's more than one explanations for that, kid." Emma rolled her eyes.

"There is." Henry shrugged. "Maybe someone was murdered in there and he was standing guard while you looked over the body."

"There's police tape for that." Emma laughed a little. "And the last thing we need is for you to be spreading rumors."

"It wouldn't be a rumor if you tell me." Henry pointed out.

"But then you will be robbing me of a good story to tell you when you get home and start making dinner, because hell knows I'm not going too."

Henry narrowed his eyes for a second. "Oh, didn't I tell you? I'm staying at Regina's tonight."

Emma rolled her eyes. "Yeah, over my dead body. Now get to class before I make the teacher give you extra homework."

Henry gave her one last eye roll and went on down the hallway. Emma watched him go relieved that he didn't seem as odd as he did last night and that he didn't press for any more information.

"Well he seems cheery." David commented as his daughter lead them back outside where it was now raining slightly. That combined with the just above freezing temperatures made the weather pretty much unbearable now.

"As long as he is not tormenting five year old's, I'm okay with that." Emma responded, putting up her hood and sprinting to the truck. "To Regina's." She commanded after they were both in the cab.

David looked at her funny.

"Look, we can play detective and drive all around town which on a normal day, yeah, sure, or we can go to Regina and ask for a potion. She going to owe me favors here soon anyways, might as well start now."She felt sorry for her father, seeing as she knew she was not herself today, but try as she may, she just could not shake the mood.

"Alright." He finally agreed quietly and drove to Regina's house.

* * *

><p>It was only a brief squabble with her until they got the tiny blue bottle with a corkscrew in it, majorly due to the fact that Emma had thought to call ahead and Regina had not wanted to start anything with either her or David right now. "Don't worry about tonight Emma, get some sleep." Was all she said as she handed over the bottle. She didn't even ask how Henry was, which Emma found strange.<p>

Nonetheless, she thanked her and then they went to Granny's to get one of Red's possessions and now they were following close behind a flying dress in the truck. David had picked it because he claimed it had to be something that they could easily see and having a soaked ruined dress was much better then dying, which could easily be the case. Emma had held her breath as the dress made a turn on the street where her parents loft was. No way Red was with Mary Margret. If that was the case, she would be officially giving up on today and handing the reins over to David, but as it turned out, it flew pass the loft. After it did, it took a few more turns and went directly for the entrance of the woods.

"It wasn't a full moon last night." David muttered as he stopped the truck and shifted it into park.

Emma groaned.

"Sorry, sweetheart. We have to get out...perks of the job."

Emma opened the door, wishing that the sheriffs car hadn't have broken down last week and wasn't still in the shop because she had stashed a few umbrellas in the glove box. Her Hood would just have to do for today, so she put it up and started into the forest, trying to keep the clothing article in sight and navigating the wet ground all at the same time. David quickly came up behind her with a flashlight that helped a little, but not much. The deeper into the woods they got, the wetter and muddier it became and the more they wondered if they were going to find a dead body.

"If you're cold, just use your magic to heat up." David told her. "The last thing we need is for you to be getting sick."

Emma shook her head, concentrating on the ground. She thought of that, she did, but she also thought of the prospect of might having to fight of Ruby's kidnapper and if that became the case, she wanted the whole magic thing to be a surprise.

After a few more minutes, the enchanted dress led them too a sudden drop. Emma knew it well, it was the one Henry had fallen down just a couple months ago when they all went for a quiet hike in the woods. Henry had turned out to be okay, there wasn't even a bruise on him, but still, that was saying nothing for Red, she could be hurt down there, or worse, even if she did manage to climb the nature made wall successfully. "See? We would have never found her if we just kept questioning people." Emma sighed, getting ready to climb down.

"No, Emma." David stuck his arm out to stop her. "We all know this thing is hell to climb down and that's even when it's dry, I'm going first."

Emma knew that there was no point in arguing with him, so she just watched as he threw the flashlight to her and climb down the wall expertly, without seeming to have any problem at all. He was the prince after all though, it was practically their jobs to make everything seem like it took no effort.

"Okay, coming down." She threw the flashlight to him and watched as she searched the immediate area for Red. When he came up with nothing, she got into place and slowly started climbing down. The drop was only about twelve feet, and in all reality. Emma did not remember it always being there which was weird, especially since there was no other ways that she knew of to get to that part of the woods.

"Careful." David warned as her boot slipped off from where she wedged it on-top of a heavy branch that was poking out.

"Keep going, I'll be fine." Emma told him, getting her footing back and taking another step down.

As it turns out, that step did not want to be taken, and she lost her grip on the wall completely and tumbled down, landing in a heavy heap on the cold wet ground below.

"Emma!" David dropped the flashlight right away and went to go try to help her daughter up.

The shock of it all kept Emma quiet and painless for a few minutes. In fact, the first thing she became aware of was the cold rain on her face. She batted it away, annoyed, becoming aware that she was laying almost directly flat on her back, which as a general rule couldn't have been the original position she had fallen in, and that there was pain radiating from her ankle.

"Emma?" David asked again, this time kneeling right by her side.

"I"m okay, Dad, it was what? Only a twelve foot fall?" She then tried to get up because they still had to find Red and the enchanted object was probably long gone by now. As she tried to sit up though, she became of a sharp pain in her head.

"Oh, hell, Emma, your bleeding." David cursed as Emma winced but then tried to move her head even more to find what the hell David was talking about. After a few seconds, she found nothing, only that in David's hands was a handful of leaves with droplets of blood on them that may or may not have been hers.

"I'm fine dad, I only think I twisted my ankle. I can probably still walk on it though, so let's go find Ruby."

"Emma?! David?!"

That was Ruby's voice, Emma knew that much. It was Ruby's voice, but it sounded pretty far away still.

David cursed and said something about calling Killian?

Emma could not be sure of what exactly he said but it was the last thing she heard before everything went black.


	8. Chapter 7

"Down here Leroy!"

"Get Ruby...shes hurt too."

"Emma! Bloody hell!"

"We need back up!"

A little scream.

The above were the things that Emma heard as she fought against the darkness. Honestly, she wasn't even going to fight, she was going to just let the darkness take her, her head hurt that bad, until she heard Killian's voice. She could not leave him and if he ever found out that she had even thought about it, well, it would be horrible.

As it turned out though, true love was not enough to keep it away and she got swallowed up again.

* * *

><p>"David!" Snow came bursting through the doors of the waiting room.<p>

"Shhhhh." David immediately bounded up from his chair in the waiting room and wrapped her in a hug. "Where Neal?"

"Regina." Snow answered into his shoulder. "I couldn't find Belle."

"Shhhh that's because she's in with Red." David quickly assured his wife.

"Well, why aren't you with Ruby? What happened to her? What happened to Emma exactly? Why aren't you with our daughter David?"

David cringed at his wife's questions. "Because I was here waiting for you," he told her. "Because while Ruby is just banged up, if something major did happen to her, it wouldn't be appropriate to barge in with questions right now. And with Emma...I was in there, but she's not awake yet, Snow. Killian's with her and he'll tell us if she wakes up. Right now, I need you to come with me to pick Henry up from school."

Snow frowned. "No. He can ask Regina to do it. I want to see Emma."

David sighed. "Regina has Roland and Neal, unless you thought ahead to give her the car seat she can't, and Robins here." he indicated Robin who was sitting in one of the chairs. "He helped us get the girls up."

"Then go by yourself. Or get Killian to do it."

"David shut his eyes for a moment. "Snow, I get it, you are freaking out, I am too, but I happen to know that seeing her now is just going to make things worse. Dr Whale says there's a good chance she will wake up soon and its also not fair to Henry to not tell him about this. Let's go!" with that he pulled his wife's hand and after a few seconds of that, Snow stumbled willingly to the truck with him.

"I want to see her, David."

"She looks horrible, no you don't."

"But you realize that the last time her and I talked, we had a fight."

This was basically what their whole conversation consisted of until they pulled up to the school and seen Henry coming out the door before David even put the truck into park.

"They told you I was coming?" David asked as Henry opened the door and Snow got out so that he could sit between them.

"Yeah, they said it was a emergency. Whats wrong? Does it have something to do with earlier?"

"Kind of." David frowned as Snow took his school bag from him and set it in her own lap.

"Kind of?" Henry narrowed his eyes. "You know you do not have to hide anything from me, I'm not a little kid anymore."

"There's been an accident and your mother is in the hospital unconscious." He pulled back out of the parking lot.

"Which one?" Henry asked, even know he kinda already knew.

"Emma." Snow answered quietly.

"What happened?! Is she going to be alright? Why aren't you with her? Wheres Killian?" Henry started attacking them with questions.

David answered in basically the same way he answered Snow which seemed to satisfy Henry until they were almost at the hospital. "Killian told me this morning that he you weren't going to let mom work today." He broke the awkward silence of the ride.

"I wasn't." David shrugged. "But you know how your mother is, stubborn. She came in anyways."

"But when I saw you two earlier, she looked awful, like she was going to drop dead any second." he observed. "You should have sent her home."

"She wouldn't go home." By now David was parked in the hospital lot. "And then we got a case, and then...you know what? It doesn't matter. Whats done is done. Let's go." He opened the truck with a frustrated sigh.

"If you would have made her go home, she would not be here." Henry muttered, sliding out after Snow and taking his back pack from her, not returning the shaken smile she gave him.

"Look, we can play the blame game or we can go in and see her, the choice is yours." David sternly told him as he walked in the glass doors and down the hall to where the people who helped him rescue the girls were.

"Oh, god, Henry!" Granny got up from the small green chair and wrapped him in a hug. "I'm so sorry."

Henry nodded and returned her hug.

"Dr. Whale said Ruby needed rest and I couldn't be in there." She explained to the prince over Henry's head.

"Wait...Ruby's here too?" Henry escaped from Granny's arms and looked up at them. "Is that who you were looking for at my school? What happened?"

David sighed. Henry was nothing but smart. "We don't know yet, we had just found her when your mom got hurt ans she was pretty banged up too. I'll find out later."

Henry frowned and bit his lip.

"Hey, it could just be that she was out taking a walk and fell. We can't know for sure if anything bad happened." Belle assured him with a soft smile.

"Yeah except something bad always happens." Henry groaned.

"Shhh, it's okay, bud. Lets go see your mother. Maybe she's awake." David took him by the shoulder. He highly doubted the last part, Dr Whale would have been in here right away if she was.

Snow trailed behind them with a hand on the small of Henry's back, which he did feel and he would have shaken off, but he also realized that this was not the time nor the place to express his remaining anger with his grandmother.

As they entered the room, Henry brushed past David to get to his mother's bed first. David was wrong, she was not awake and she looked horrible. Maybe it was the hospital gown someone had stripped her to put on or the flurry of machines that were beeping and swirling next to her bed, or even Killian who looked almost dead himself sitting next to her in a hard backed chair. Whatever it was, Henry could barely stomach the sight of it and he was aware of Mary Margret not being behind her anymore which meant that she couldn't.

"Was there anything?" David asked, causing Killian to just shake his head and finally looked up at Henry.

"There's a chair over there." He pointed to it.

Henry shook his head. "No, I"m good." he responded and went to go stand by his mother's head.

"She just has a concussion, the comas not going to last for long." Killian spoke out loud, but it wasn't clear if he was talking to David, Henry or himself.

Henry nodded anyways.

"I should go see if Snow is okay." David told them softly and quickly escaped.

"Get the damn chair." Killian told him. "Unless you want me to take you home."

Henry silently went and got the chair. "So she's going to wake up? One hundred percent chance? All we have to do is wait?"

"Nothing's ever a one hundred percent chance, you should know that."

Henry nodded silently again. "She's the savior, she can't die from a...?"

"Rock." Killian finished. "She fell in the forest."

"Because it was raining snowy slippery mess out there." Henry sighed and both of them feel silent for a while until Dr Whale came in and quickly checked on Emma.

After he left, Henry made sure he was down the hallway before he suddenly stood up from his chair and kissed Emma lightly on the forehead.

"Henry...?" Killian looked up, watching him.

"True loves kiss." Henry shrugged, explaining. "It was worth a try."

Killian smiled sadly at him. "This is not a curse though, she just fell."

"Yeah..." Henry sat back down. "You should try though."

"I have." Killian nodded.

Henry rolled his eyes a little. "On the lips or forehead?"

Killian shook his head and stood up and pecked Emma softly on the lips if anything to humor the boy. "I love you Emma." He whispered and watched her face for a couple of moments, only to see no changes.

"I tried, lad." He sighed sitting back down.

* * *

><p>Ruby woke up only fifteen minutes after Henry and his grandparents got to the hospital and after she got checked back out by Doctor Whale, he gave the okay for David to go do some light questioning. So He left Snow in the care of Belle, went to go check if Henry was okay with Killian again, and went to do just that.<p>

"David." Ruby greeted from her bed, her voice quiet and confused.

"Hey Ruby." He greeted, sitting in a chair. "How are you feeling?"

She tried to sit up but winced so stopped. She only had one machine connected to her, so that wasn't really the problem, it was more of her bruised side that was. "Just tired." She shook her head, lying just a little. "And confused...and I'm not sure why nobody will let me go home. I sprained my wrist, bruised my side and there's a tiny scrape on my leg, that's hardly death worthy, is it? We all know I suffered worse."

David sighed. Tiny? The scrape was not tiny, he had seen the blood. In fact, he wasn't sure even know who was bleeding more, his daughter or her. "We have to be careful, Red and your grandmother seems convinced you suffered some brain injury, and I gotta be honest, you seem like you could have."

"Because I don't remember what happened?" She had told him that when they were on the way to the hospital and he did not seem to believe her one bit.

"You really don't?" David raised his eyebrows.

"I told you that." Ruby repeated, "Remember?"

"Ruby, you were suppose to pull a shift at the diner this morning, and you just disappeared and we found you hurt in the woods, you have to remember something."

"I remember going to sleep last night and setting my alarm and...wishing I took a night shift." Ruby said like it was helpful. "That help?"

"Maybe. I'm not sure yet." David sighed and wrote something down. "It doesn't help that I really can't be sure if you don't remember because you don't or because of the fact that you may have gotten a concussion that hasn't shown up yet, but we'll figure it out."

"Yet...?" Ruby asked concerned.

"At all." David corrected. "Like I said, we'll just have to wait and see."

From Ruby's facial expression, she was none too happy about that. "What if it was a curse? A sleeping curse?"

"A curse that only affected you?" David raised his eyebrows.

Ruby shrugged and seemed to sink lower in the bed.

"Don't worry, Ruby, we'll get to the bottom of this, we always do."

* * *

><p>After nearly an hour of sitting there, Henry convinced Killian to go down to the cafeteria with him to get some food. At first he was going to go, but then the pirate had said that he wanted a coffee and Henry had complained about not being able to carry that much up the stairs. Killian had grumbled, but got up to go follow him.<p>

Henry was able to waste twenty minutes, picking out flavors of ice cream and then insisting that they should get a cup for Emma when she woke up. The cafeteria person had to go in the back to get him more Rocky Ro of the hall that his mother was in. ad, almost pushing Killian off the edge, but Henry had this idea in his head that if they left the room for a while, Emma would be awake when they got back, that she just didn't want to see them looking like they did.

"Got it all, mate?" Killian asked him as they maneuvered the hallways in a way that didn't force them to go past the waiting room where everyone was.

Henry nodded. "Maybe she will be up when we get back." He told him as they were rounding the comer of the hall that his mother was in.

"Maybe." Killian shrugged and then looked up only to see a flury of doctors and nurses coming out of Emma's room. "Bloody Hell." He muttered and started jogging towards the room.

"She flat-lined." A helpful brunette nurse told him. "We were able to bring her back though."

Killian burst in the room without a thank you to the nurse, only to run into David and snow who were nearly besides themselves. "I left her for 20 minutes." He said out loud, not really knowing if it was directly towards them or not. "Bloody hell!"

Snow was crying, David was softly trying to console her and Henry was getting told that he could not be in the room anymore, but Killian barely heard any of it. All that he cared about was the steady beeping of the heart machine and the fear that it was going to shut off again. It was true that he had been in Storybrooke a considerable amount of time by now, and was even hooked up to one of these machines himself at one point, so he was pretty confident that she should have been up by now, especially since all she had hit her head on was a rock.

He was convinced something else was going on here.

Or maybe he was just that besides himself, but whatever it was, he did not listen to the doctor when he suggested that even he should not be in here. "And where exactly do I suggest I go, mate?" He demanded.

"Where everybody else is, her parents...out in the waiting room. She needs quiet."

"She's bloody unconscious!" He yelled. "And she needs quiet?! You told me she just had a concussion and that she would wake up soon! I'm not sure you even know what you are talking about!"

"Killian, calm down-" Dr Whale tried to speak But Killian was not having it.

"I almost lost her! You know what that means? That means you are not doing your job! This town needs to appoint a new doctor! Hell!" He kicked the chair in frustration. "I am not leaving this bloody room. Get that through your thick skull right now."

"Some people's head are pounding here! I don't know what you are going on about, Killian, but could you please Shut up?"

At first Killian thought that was Dr Whales comeback, but then he recognized the voice.

"Emma love!" He spun around, and seen that her eyes were infact opened. "You are awake!"

Emma seemed to cringe. "Shhh." She chastised him again.

"Still have that headache, Miss Swan?" Whale come up to the bed too and Killian had to resist the urge to punch him in the face.

"Whale?" She looked at him confused.

"You're in the hospital, Emma, you hit your head and have a pretty nice concussion among other things. I'll explain it to you, but I think your family will do that just fine when I alert them that you are awake, they are really anxious to see you." He checked some things, scribbled some things down on his clipboard, and then left with a slight nod and smile at Killian.

"Emma..." Killian saw the moment, and bent down and kissed her softly before anyone else got there. "Oh hell, love..."

Emma moved her lips slightly, under the guise of kissing him back, but in reality, she still did not have much energy. "I... Ruby..."

"Ruby is fine love, Everybody's fine. Is that the last thing you remember?"

Emma nodded, but it hurt, so she quickly stopped.

"You fell, in the forest, slipped on the wet snowy ground climbing down to get Ruby. David had to call for help...bloody hell love. I almost lost you! I'm never leaving your side again."

Emma sighed softly. "Well in that case can you do it quietly? Or go get whale to give me some pain meds?"

"Sorry love." Killian tried to smile at her, smoothing back her hair and taking great care to whisper.

"Mom!" Henry choose that exact moment to run in. "Your awake!"

This time both Emma and Killian cringed away from his yell. "Yeah, I am, kid but I still have an ogre sized headache."

"Emma." David who came up behind Henry and heard what she said smiled. "Glad to hear your voice again, sweetie."

Emma slightly rolled her eyes. "I"m fine dad, where's mom?"

David face fell. "In the waiting room. She...she doesn't want to come in. Says you hate her and... oh, Emma, she'll come around..."

"I don't hate her." Emma mumbled, knowing better then to shake her head. "I just, she had no right too-"

Killian cleared his throat. "um, love? Don't you think we had enough excitement for the day?"

"Yeah mom." Henry agreed, handing her his cup of ice cream. "We got you some. Want it?"

Emma eyes brightened some. "Yeah..." She gave her father an apologizing glance and then tried to sit up. During the process, she suddenly became aware and remembered that her right ankle hurt immensely. She cussed. "Its broken isn't it?"

"Your ankle?" Killian was hyper aware of the cussing. "Yeah, it is, love. Whale put a cast on it while you were unconscious, ut you still shouldn't move it...so just relax, please?"

Emma grumbled a bit, how was she suppose to eat laying down? In all reality she could prop herself up without using her legs, but she knew Killian enough to know he wouldn't approve of any moving. Actually is she was being honest with herself, she didn't want to eat. All she really wanted to do was sleep. "You eat it, kid." She told Henry with a frown, and then a yawn.

"Someones still tired." Killian and David said almost at the same time.

"No." Emma argued. " I mean, okay, maybe a little, but I apparently I've been sleeping for a long time, and I want you guys to stay."

"Shhh I will stay love." Killian promised her, but you need your rest."

"Yeah." David agreed. "Henry and I will be back, Emma. We'll go talk to Doctor Whale about you getting out of here, since I'm sure you're going to want too."

Emma couldn't argue with that, but she couldn't let her son and father get away without asking one more question. "Hey dad...? What happened to Ruby? I can't remember."

David sighed, and cringed. "She doesn't remember, either, but don't worry about that. It's not your concern right now. I'm taking you off the case for a while."

**A/N: I really can not thank you guys enough for all the reviews, follows and favorites! As always, you guys are amazing and will be rewarded with something huge happening in the next couple chapters :P**


	9. Chapter 8

Whale wanted to keep Emma overnight, but as soon as Killian heard this, he was not having it. It did take a lot of persuasion and promises though, but what Killian wanted, he got and after the cast on her ankle got dealt with, he was wheeling Emma out to her bug with Henry trailing behind them.

"Good thing you taught me how to use this thing." Killian grinned, unlocking the door and wheeling her to the passenger side.

Emma grumbled in response. She was none to happy about having to be wheeled out, but as Whale told her, it was hospital policy. "Where did you find the damn keys anyways?" She grumbled as Killian gentry began to move her from the wheelchair to the seat.

Killian chuckled. "In a spot you didn't look."

"Hook!" Emma exclaimed, reverting to his nickname which was ironic because it was right by her butt and if he was not careful she was going to get impaled with it. "I'm not in the mood."

"They were on the floor underneath the table, love, you must have thrown them down when I told you we were going to Regina's yesterday and missed." He slid Emma in the seat without giving her anymore injury's and gave the wheelchair to Henry to return. He gave her a light kiss on the forehead before he got in the driver's seat. "Your parents are going to get your medication on their way home." he started gently filling her in on the information he gathered while she was getting a better cast on. "The stuff in your system should last until then, and under no certain terms can you use magic right now, so no thoughts of healing yourself, lass."

Emma leaned her head back against the headrest and closed her eyes against her pounding headache. "Okay." she agreed quietly, choosing not to make any comments about her mother bothering to go get her medicine but not see her in the actual hospital."

"You alright, love?" Killian looked over at her, starting the car, and suddenly started to worry about if her ankle had enough foot space up in front. Maybe he should have just let her lay down in the back seat.

"Just drive, Killian." She told him quietly, trying not to sound snappy.

Killian obliged, driving up to the door to pick up Henry, who slid into the backseat as quietly as he could, and then navigating the streets back to their apartment. He expertly pulled up in front and parked, causing Emma to smirk at a memory from back when she was teaching him how to drive, and pulled her from the car and up the stairs, carrying her bridal style. She was more then happy to lay there with her ear pressed up against his chest, the rhythmic beating of his heart lulling her to sleep already, but when the got inside, he set her gently on the couch. She frowned up at him.

"What?" He sighed. "Emma, love, please for loves sake do not be pouty. You have two choices, bed or couch, because I can't let you up or Wale will skin me alive."

Honestly that was the last thing on Emma's mind right now. She gave Killian credit, normally she hated to be coddled, but right now she was in too much pain and to exhausted to care. "Your arms were just warm" She mumbled, laying her head back on the arm of the couch.

Killian smiled at her, sadly, every time he looked at her, it was breaking his heart to see her hurt. "I know, love, but I have to get blankets and pillows and then make us some food."

At the word food, Emma groaned and shook her head slightly.

"Alright, I won't push the food right now, but you are going to try to sleep." He started down the hall to fetch her pillow off the bed and extra blankets, hearing Henry come in as he did, and wondering if Emma did not want food simply because she wasn't hungry or because she didn't want a repeat of this morning to happen.

"I put the crutches in the kitchen." Next thing he knew Henry was standing right behind him as he bent down to rifle through the mess of the blanket shelf.

"Thanks lad." Killian got up and turned around, just to see him disappear into his room. "Uh...Henry?" He poked his head in the room and narrowed his eyes at him. "You're mother does not need you to be hiding from her tonight, trust me, what you did last night is the furthest from her mind."

Henry nodded at him. "I know, we talked a little at school today and she didn't seem angry with me."

Killian nodded and went back to the living room to find Emma with her eyes wide open. "Emma." He sighed again and already came to terms with the fact that he was going to be scolding her all night. "Here's your pillow," he fit it under her head. "Now shut your eyes and go to sleep."

"People with concussions aren't suppose to go to sleep unless they are under medical attention." Emma mumbled.

"I just have to wake you up every hour to check." Killian gently explained, draping a blanket over her.

"Oh yeah, because that is going to be really fun." Emma rolled her eyes a little.

"It will be okay." Killian kissing her. "It always is."

The kiss got her to smile a little. "I believe you." She murmured, causing him to beam back. "Oh screw it, Killian. I'm sorry. I love you and I am sorry. I am sorry that I'm taking my anger at my mother and Regina out on you, I am sorry that I didn't listen and went to work today and I am so sorry that you had to go find my son last night because I'm to terrible of a mother to do it."

Killian's face crumbled and he really did not know what to say.

"You are not a horrible mother, mom." Henry choose that moment to come out of hiding. "You're a really great mom. Killian only found me because I wanted him to find me. Regina actually found me first, but I pushed her away. I was just a brat, and I'm the one who should be sorry, mom. If I didn't pull what I pulled, you would have slept last night and wouldn't have gotten hurt today."

Emma frowned, trying her hardest to concentrate on her son through her fuzzy head. "Henry..." She started but then hesitated.

"Henry, Emma fell off a drop because it was rainy and icy and just rough terrain. She missed a step, it could have happened to David. It was just a random accident that had nothing to do with you." Killian interjected, carefully siting on the other end of the couch, propping Emma's hurt ankle on his legs. "And Emma? Of course I forgive you, love, but you are not the only one who need to make apologies. I need to make a lot of them-."

"Uh... Killian?" Henry indicated Emma, whose eyes had fallen shut and was already snoring softly.

"Well, I guess my apologies bored her." Killian grinned at him, happy to see that she was no longer fighting sleep.

"Guess so." Henry shrugged.

"Lad, I meant what I said. This could have happened to anyone, it was not your fault."

Henry nodded. "I know it could have but..." he sighed, "it was just a fall in the forest, how can she be hurt this badly? She died for a few seconds, Killian. All from a fall in the forest."

"Head injuries can be bad, lad."

Henry bit his lip and nodded. He knew that. He just didn't want to believe that he could lose anyone at any given moment from something simple. He could not imagine life without Emma and the possibility terrified him.

Killian looked at him and smiled sadly. "She's okay now, we're going to make sure of it. You and me, alright?"

Henry smiled back and nodded. Him and Killian against the world, just like he used to pretend when Killian used to watch him a couple years ago.

"Great, now can you think of anything your mother would like to eat? She might think I will let her get away without dinner tonight but she is sadly mistaken."

Henry shrugged, eying his mothers sleeping face. "Chinese?" He shrugged. "I can go out and pick some up."

"Or you can just call your grandparents and tell them to stop when they come later." Killian suggested. He was honestly not looking forward to David and Mary Margret coming, but he was not willing to leave Emma's side to go to the pharmacy either and from the look on Henry's face, he felt the same way.

"Fine." He agreed, despite the face, and pulled out his phone and got David to agree to the plan.

AAAAAAAAAA...AAAAAAAAA

It was an hour before Charming and Snow knocked on the apartment door, during which, Killian had ended up falling asleep with Emma and Henry was to frightened to wake him up, so he just settled in on the floor next to his Emma's head so that he could hear her rhythmic breathing.

"Come in." Henry got up to open the door and when he turned back, Killian was awake and watching Emma with concern, who did not wake up to the new company coming in through the door. "Thanks Grandpa." Henry took the bags of Chinese and walked in setting them down on the coffee table. "I didn't want to wake you up." He whispered to Killian. "She's fine though right, I mean she's still breathing."

Killian nodded. "Yeah, lad. Shes fine." He barely mouthed

"Fine?" without him knowing, Snow had come up behind Henry so she just heard the whole exchange. "Maybe she should have stayed under Whale's watch overnight." She directed at Killian.

Killian gave her a look. "She's fine." He muttered, keeping his voice down that low so that he wouldn't snap at her. "Would you enjoy getting woken up every ten minutes anyways? It's not very conducive to the situation."

Killian sighed. "This coming from a women who couldn't even walk inside of a hospital room to see your daughter all because she might hate her?"

"I'm here now." Snow stiffened, adjusting Neal in her arms.

"Exactly." David came up behind Mary Margret to see his daughter. "We all have issues with each other, I know, but the fighting is not going to be good for Emma and that is why Snow is here."

Snow nodded. "It will be like last night never happened...except if Emma brings it up."

Killian eyed David but then realized it was the only way he could get snow over here, and as much as he didn't want to believe it, and as much as Emma probably did not want to see her, maybe they did need to see each other. "Fine." He agreed. "I will keep my own personal opinions on the subject out of this, but I do need to say something first. I know that she is your daughter and you love her and you haven't got to take care of her for twenty-eight years but she's not little anymore, and this is our apartment. That and the doctor gave me permission to watch her overnight, and he wouldn't have done it, if he did not think that I could complete the task, so I would very much like it if you stop referring t the fact that I can not take care of her."

Snow seemed shocked at his request, and he couldn't quite tell the emotions on David face, but they both eventually nodded, silently.

"There." Killian smiled at them, and he hoped that it didn't look to fake. "Now we can have a nice family evening. I didn't mean any disrespect and I'm sorry that I fell asleep, both can be explained that I had a rough night last night too."

"We all did." David sighed. "and its going to be another rough night for all of us." He walked away, putting the pharmacy bags on the kitchen table.

"How long she going to be like this?" Henry asked concerned, back at his spot by her head.

"Not for long." David assured. "A couple days before she's all rest up and then we'll consider letting her heal her ankle and then..."

"I can get back on the case?" Emma interrupted, sounding quite sleepy.

Everyone turned to look at her while David responded. "I hope to have it solved by then, and besides, there may not even be one."

"There may not even be one?" Emma tried to sit up, but she quickly got stopped by Killian who she frowned at. "So are you trying to tell me that Ruby was just taking a stroll in the woods at five in the morning without anyway to contact anyone and just...fell? Dad, it was not the full moon last night."

"I am saying precisely that." David nodded. "I could be wrong, but we wont know until tomorrow because she is under strict orders to stay home with Granny and rest tonight with no interference from me, sort of like you."

After David finished, Killian frowned at her again.

"What? Am I not allowed to talk now?" She asked him quietly.

"About the case? No." He answered smoothly.

Emma huffed.

"Mom. You got a free week off work, I don't know about you, but I would kill for a free week off school." Henry looked up at her.

Snow chuckled a little. "You already did Henry, remember when you fell on the playground and got a concussion and Regina kept you home for a week?"

"Sam pushed me!" Henry complained. "You just didn't see it."

Emma cringed against his loud voice, that wasn't even that loud. "Okay, kid, does it really matter now?"

"Opps, sorry mom." He reached up and squeezed her hand knowing exactly why she was cringing. "Want some food?" He gestured to the chinese.

Emma nodded, but it was just because Henry had asked, if anyone else had asked she would have refused. "Well, I would kid, but it seems like somebody is not letting me sit up right now so..."

Killian sighed and gently sat her up, letting her lean against him as Henry passed out the food. As they started to eat, it became clear that Emma was doing everything in her power to ignore her mother and everyone else was doing everything in their power to ignore the fact that she was. Killian kept shooting glances at David trying to mentally ask 'do you really believe this is helping,' but David just wasn't seeming to get the hint. Emma tried to bring up Ruby again, making suggestions to her father, that he had to admit were pretty good, but also had to play it off like he didn't need her help. Which he didn't. He would ask Killian to help him if he did need anything, but he knew that his daughter's brain would explode if she knew that was his plan.

"So the pain medication is on the table..." Snow let them know for the tenth time after everyone had finished their food.

Did she expect them to magically float around so had to keep checking? Killian felt like asking, but he knew it would not be appreciated.

"Emma's falling asleep." David murmured in response to his wife.

Killian looked down to check and her eyes were almost completely closed, but when she heard her father, they flipped wide opened. "No I'm not." She objected.

"Yes, you were, and Neal's going to get fussy soon." David told her. "If anything is going to hurt you head, it will be him, so unless you need us for anything, we better go home and get some sleep."

Maybe David knew what Killian's looks meant after all.

"Okay, dad," Emma mumbled sleepily, just wanting her mother out of there.

Snow took her sweet time getting Neal's baby bag together, and after that, they had asked Henry if he wanted to spend the night at their house which he refused. Killian had to get up anyways to grab a few pills for Emma, so he walked them to the door.

"Well, that didn't work out as planned." David told him in a quiet aside.

Killian sighed. Of coarse it wasn't going to be easy to get Snow and Emma talking again.

AAAA...AAAAAAAAAA

"Regina sends her regards." Killian showed back up at Emma's side with a glance of water and the pills. "Your mother just told me that."

Emma frowned up at him and then reached for the glass. "And she couldn't tell me herself."

"Well, you didn't quite tell her anything either, so if I were you I would just leave it be." He watched carefully as she swallowed the pills. After they were gone, he set the glass on the coffee table and went to swoop her up again. "Bed time." He softly scolded.

"Its only eight!" She complained.

"Yes, and some of us have to catch on our sleep." He kissed her softly when he got her in her arms.

"I have been sleeping all day." What would be her normal complaining voice just sounded pathetic tonight.

"We're going to our room, and you are laying in our bed and if you fall asleep of not...I cant really force you. Henry, can you bring the pillow and the water?" After he finished, he started down the hall and Henry, being more than happy to help, followed right behind, pushing past Killian when they entered to room to place Emma's pillows on the bed and set the glass of water down.

As Killian pulled the blankets back and set Emma gently down on the pillows, Henry looked awkwardly around the room. As a general rule, he didn't enjoy being in here and avoided it as much as he could, but tonight he wanted to do everything he could to help Emma out. Emma had laughed at him when they first moved here and she had realized his aversion to walking in there for any reason, even if neither her or Killian occupied it. Henry had shrugged and explained to her that he had never liked entering Regina's room either, but he knew deep down that that was different. With Regina, it was more that Henry was scared of her doing something to him if he went in there and happened to break something, or see something. He knew Emma would never do that, but it was not just her space, it was also Killian's. Killian wouldn't do anything to him either, so that was not the worry, the room just seemed...intimate and private now that they both shared it. No, it wasn't all about walking in on them during a private moment either (because all Henry could do was assumed that they did have those nights sometimes, he was not an idiot), but just the artifacts and things they had lying around he felt weren't for his eyes. They were simple things, like a picture of them down on the docks that Henry himself had taken that Emma had propped up on her nightstand, or the single rose that they kept magically alive from a date in the small skinny crystal vase on top of the TV. Even items not like that, weirded him out, like a pair of Killian's extra boots thrown on the floor in front of the closet next to a pair of Emma's high heels. Or just the sight of the small dresser he knew they both shared. Normal everyday objects, that was all that was in here, but he still felt weird about them.

When he turned back to the bed, Killian was unscrewing his hook from his handless arm. "Thank you Henry." He murmured.

"You don't need anything else?" Henry eyed Emma.

"No kid, we're all good." Emma smiled tiredly at him as the hook clanged when Killian dropped it on the table. "Go play video games or something and don't stay up to late."

Henry looked at her weirdly. She never let him play his games freely, they always came with time limits, even on Friday nights. "Really? But...you'll call if you need anything right? I want to help. Seriously mom, don't make Killian do all of it."

Emma chuckled softly. "I'll be sure to give you a yell Henry, now go, have fun, I'm perfectly okay and we will have that talk we promised tomorrow, okay?"

Henry nodded slowly, not wanting to leave. "Alright." He glanced at Killian and then started walking slowly from the room.

"Love you kid." Emma muttered tiredly as he shut the door behind him. "He's acting weird." She turned her head and watched as Killian stripped off his shirt and kicked of his boots to climb in bed with her.

"His mother almost died today." He explained, pulling her gently into his arms. "In fact she did for a while."

"Only a couple of seconds." Emma frowned, feeling the guilt start.

"A couple of seconds too long." Killian kissed the top of her head.

"Well, I'm sorry, but I couldn't control my heart rate, I was kind of unconscious."

Killian raised an eyebrow at her snappy tone. "There's no need for that. I'm just glad your okay, love." he kissed her again and then sat up a little to adjust the blankets. "How's the ankle?"

She gave him a face. "I'm not sure if I can sleep with it."

He frowned. "Well, you don't have much choice."

She nodded dismissively and reached up to touch the comer of his frown. "Don't worry about it,I'm sure I'll get more sleep then I did last night."

Killian nodded. "Because I wasn't in here." He spoke even softer then he was. "Bloody hell Emma, I'm so sorry I got mad. I wasn't even mad just...when you get like how you were and won't let me help you..."

"There was sort of no chance for you to help me last night with the stunt Henry pulled." She mumbled, feeling even more guilty now. He should not be the one apologizing. Yes, he went off on her and decided to sleep on the couch last night but it was only because of the things she did.

"There was." He shifted her so that he was looking in her eyes. "Somewhere in between your mom coming and..." He paused, cringing and stroked her cheek. "Alright, lets not argue about this anymore. I hate arguing with you. Last night happened, and now all we need to do is fix it."

"And I suppose fixing it is not trying to kill myself on an investigation?" She sort of chuckled.

Killian shook his head, not finding it funny at all. "Fixing it is talking about it." he shrugged. "Fixing it is telling me why you are refusing to talk to your mother."

This time was Emma's turn to frown. "That's obvious, Killian."

"She messed up, Emma. Regina told her they was a possibility of going home and she got excited. The life she had planned for you probably flashed before her eyes and she could not control it, that hardly requires a death sentence."

"She knows how I feel about..."

"I doesn't matter!" Killian interrupted. "And you know how I know? Because the same thing happened to me sitting at Regina's dinner table. I saw my brother, I saw my ship, I saw my home, and I love you too, just like your mother does, but nothing can compare to that moment when you get that news. Its hard to get things through."

Emma looked sadly up at him, "Your brother and ship are gone." She whispered, still trying to completely understand his words through the clouds in her head.

"I know love." Killian frowned. "I traded them for you and Henry and I do not regret that. Don't think that for a second, but the fact remains that it was extremely hard to think about if you really wanted to do this at that moment."

"That moment should have been passed already for mom by the time she came over." Emma grimaced.

"The moments still not completely passed for me." Killian admitted softly.

Emma looked at him with a little surprise. "It's not?"

Killian shook his head. "But I also know that no matter what happens, I want to stay with you...so that's helping."

"Is it?" Emma moved her head onto his chest, that way she could hear his heart like she liked to do.

"Yes, love it is. Its making me have the ability to ask you what you want to do without letting that first reaction get in the way." he snaked his arms around her tighter.

She thought for a moment, for so long actually that he thought she fell asleep. "I'm still so confused about it actually." She finally admitted softly. "It seems like an impossible decision...but then so easy in a way. I'm like you. The easy part is wanting to stay with my family. I don't want to lose my parents again, and I know the easy solution, if you want to call it that would be too not even try to do whatever Regina is suggesting, but I can not betray everyone like that. I am the savior, I bring back the happy endings. Sure, right here , we all seem to have great happy endings, but if I quit now, they would not be finished. I was with my mother there, she seemed to be happier there even with all the ogres and without my father. Getting back there is their happy ending...I guess I'm just not sure where mine is."

Killian listened, playing with her hair gently. "Well, you got at least a week to think about it love, I'm going to be strict on this no magic thing."

"I'm a afraid a week wont be long enough." She now

"I get what you mean." Killian had a gleam in his eyes, determined not to let her get too upset. He was afraid that if she did, it might mess up her head more, but he also knew that she needed to get this out. "Just the decision to leave indoor plumbing for chamber pots is..." he pretended to shudder.

It worked a little, well at least it got a little chuckle out of her. "It's a bit more than not wanting to leave modern accommodations behind...I mean, what about Henry?"

"That's what your conversation this afternoon was going to consist of." Killian told her. "No, it's not the complete reason he did what he did last night, but it was a big part of it." He paused, bending down to kiss her head.

Emma nodded, thinking. "I'm sorry." she whispered. "I am so sorry that I got mad at you and yelled at you for just being the one he decided to open up to last night. I'm actually really glad you two keep getting closer, it just scares me sometimes."

"Scares you?" Killian echoed. He took pride in being able to read Emma like a book, and he had done a lot of thinking out on the cold and lonely couch last night but he never quite came to that conclusion. Jealous was his most obvious guess but scared...? But as he looked down at he blonde hair splayed out across his chest, it suddenly dawned on him.

"You know that I love you, Killian, and I'm done trying to keep you out of my life, but old habits die hard I guess, and especially with my son, it's..." She hesitated, not finding the words to explain.

"You don't have to say anything more about it, love, I know, you have to protect him and its making every nerve in your body scream out no, because..." he hesitated, trying to quickly decide if he wanted to go that far. "Once he got close to Baelfire, he left."

"No say it, he died." Emma mumbled into his chest.

Killian cringed. "I shouldn't have said that."

Emma shook her head. "Its fine. I think...you're right." Her voice broke at the end.

"Love!" Killian gently turned her head so that he could wipe the tears that started away. "Emma, I can assure you that I am not planning on leaving you of Henry in any way ever. Even if someone does attempt to kill me, that bastard better be up for one hell of a fight. I love you. There becomes a point where you love someone so much that you don't have words to even start explaining it, and that's how I am with you. I will follow you to the ends of the realms and be the most happiest guy in the world. With that being said, everything will be alright. I promise you Emma Swan. Everything."

Emma looked at him for a moment. "Okay..." She finally whispered, eyes slowly filling with even more tears. "I believe you."

And with the promise of eternal safety, she fell asleep in his arms.

**A/N: Let me know what you thought!**


	10. Chapter 9

When Emma woke up the next day, she noticed two things, that her head finally felt normal, and that it was nestled up under Killian's arm in probably the most awkward way of cuddling ever. She liked it though, and stayed there until the pain of her ankle became to much to bare.

"Killian?" She gently tried to move her top half to wake him up.

"Mmmm?" He groaned in his sleep.

"Got any pain meds over there? My ankle..."

"Oh! Of course!" He was suddenly wide awake as soon as he mentioned pain and grabbed the bottle and the glass of water from the night before and handed them to her. "It's been well over six hours, I can get you fresh water if you want."

She shook her head and took the pills, looking at the clock herself. "Whoa, we slept for over twelve hours?"

"No, you slept for twelve and a half hours." Killian corrected. "I slept for maybe four."

Emma's mouth fell slightly open. "Killian...you didn't have to say up to watch me, I would have been perfectly fine."

He stroked her cheek. "Maybe...maybe not." He shrugged. "But I did sleep some, love, so you shouldn't worry. Plus I enjoy watching you sleep, remember?" That became sort of a joke with them as she was self conscious about it when they first fell into theses sleeping situation. "Oh, and plus Henry had a bit of an issue understanding that I didn't need him to help me anymore."

She winced. "I'll talk to him later."

He chuckled. "No, no, it's fine, love, he was just wanted to help, its fine now. Once he see's that you're better..."

She nodded, torn between wanting to lay back down and cuddle with him some more and stretching out her stiff body and seeing her son.

"Are you hungry, love? I can make breakfast." He made the decision for her, sitting up and twisting his hook on (goodness only knows why he thought he needed it to cook breakfast in the first place.)

"That depends, will it be a repeat of yesterday." She smirked. "I don't know what you were attempting to make, but I don't understand how I managed to sleep through the smell."

"Pancakes." Killian responded, peering down at her. "And it sure woke Henry up, you should have seen his face."

Emma chuckled at the thought and went to sit herself up. "I am hungry, but oatmeal will be just fine, and I think I can manage that by myself." She swung her legs over the bed and then frowned when she didn't see the crutched anywhere. "Damn, did we live the crutches out in the living room?"

Killian nodded. "I'm afraid I'll just have to carry you then." He seemed delighted about this fact as he slid off the bed and walked over, picking her up bridal style again.

Emma sighed, but didn't complain, when they reached the hall though, she made a face. "We need to make a pit stop, sleeping for twelve hours wrecks havoc on your bladder."

Killian chuckled, and helped her in the bathroom, finally getting out the the kitchen a couple minutes later and insisting on putting on the kettle for her. Emma watched amused, thinking she had to give him more lessons on using a stove, and this was a good start. "What flavor do you want, love?" He asked, pulling the box of oatmeal of the fridge.

"Blueberry."

Killian knew the answer. Blueberry was her favorite and she only bought the variety boxes for him and Henry. He got out two packets and gave her them with a bowl and a spoon. "If you're lucky, I'll let you pour your own water."

Emma stuck her tongue out childishly and opened the packets, emptying them into the glass bowl. "Henrys still asleep I assume, or is it a school day?"

Killian shook his head. "No, its saturday." He gently reminded, now busy with selecting his favorite cereal and grabbing a bowl and setting it next to her. "We were both up really late last night so I would say we have at least another hour without him."

"He wasn't playing the games that whole time, was he?" Emma frowned.

Killian nodded. "Mostly. The boy went through a lot the last couple days, I thought he earned it."

Emma went quiet as the kettle started whistling and killian grabbed it, pouring some of it into her bowl and grabbing the milk carton out of the fridge and sitting down. "You forgot the coffee." She teased, sending him scrambling up again to set a pot to brew.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile in the Charming's loft, David had been up with their son for hours all for the sake of letting his wife get some sleep which she wasn't even doing. He had been watching her for at least the past hour and yes, she had her eyes closed, and yes, she was spread out on the bead, but he could tell she wasn't sleeping. She was probably to busy obsessing over hers and Emma's princess fight to let herself drift away. He wasn't trying to sound mean or difficult or anything of the sort, and of coarse he wanted to support both his wife and daughter, he just did not understand why they had to bicker about this now, and keep bickering about it. So Emma did not want to be a princess, that's fine. He understood that. Other then the title, she did not have to be, some people just didn't like the poofy dresses and the balls, she could live in a cabin out in the middle of the woods even, he didn't care, as long as they had their daughter in the same realm they were in. That's what he felt Snow Should be focusing more on right now, not Emma's rightful title. If they wanted to talk about rightful titles, they should be talking about how Regina was her step grandmother, and they never talked about that. That was his point though, there was just some things that were just left alone.<p>

He glanced at the clock on the wall across the room while rocking his son, it was almost ten in the morning, and he had been awake with his son since three, and he still had to stop by the diner to see if Red remembered anything during the night. Snow had told him not too, that it was saturday and he should give both him and ruby the weekend to recuperate and start again on Monday. David already told Granny he would be around sometime today though, besides it would be better if he got this specific case under wraps sooner better then later for the sake of keeping Emma's nose out of it. He had the sinking feeling even between Killian and him, they couldn't keep her out of it for long. Emma wasn't the one to just sit around the house for a week. He felt confident enough with the weekend since she had Henry home, but Monday, one her son left for school, she would not know what to do with herself.

That is why, when the clock struck ten, he got up and gently placed his son next to his wife. "Snow, I have to go do some work."

As suspected, she opened her eyes immediately and hugged her son to her side. "How do you know Ruby will even be up?"

"If she isn't, I'll go back into the woods and look for evidence, I have to do that anyways." David responded, grabbing his jacket and badge. He knew that any evidence would have been washed away with the rain yesterday and he should have probably stayed behind to do what he had to do when Leroy and Killian arrived to transport the girls to the hospital, but he didn't, so sue him.

"Will you be home later?" Mary Margaret mumbled, watching him.

"Yeah, I'm not sure what time or anything though." He grabbed his phone and keys. "Depends if Red tells me anything and what else happens today. I am the only working sheriff today remember."

This caused Snow to frown and David to frown. "Call her, see how shes doing." He gently urged her. He already had, and according to Killian, she was still sleeping peacefully, but that was an hour and a half ago.

Snow nodded. "I will."

David gave her a small smile and bent down to kiss his wife on the lips and his son on the head. "I'll call when I have a more definite time I'll be home." He told him. "Love you." He walked out the door and down the stairs to his truck, starting it up and pulling out.

* * *

><p>Regina inhaled the scent of her coffee and smiled to herself, as she walked out of the kitchen barefoot, and into her empty livingroom. She sat down on the couch where she had dropped her high heels, but instead of putting hur mug down to slip them up, she curled her feet up under her, and sipped the coffee slowly. Robin hated the smell of coffee, but Regina had swore she would get him used to it one day. He and Roland weren't there though now, so she could enjoy her morning beverage completely guilt free. Her two boys had spent the night last night camping in the woods with the other merry men. What happened to Ruby and Emma has scared Robin just enough that he really did not want to, wanting to stay close to Regina to protect her but there was several different reasons he wasn't there now. First and foremost Regina reminded him that she was formally the evil queen and was more then capable of taking care of herself, and the second reason was that this night had been planned for days and Roland was really excited to spend time with his "uncles", not to mention that Regina had asked Henry to spend the night so that they could have some bonding time. Of coarse that didn'nt happen, and Regina understood that he wanted to spend the night was Emma to make sure his biological mom was okay. She and Emma were not spending all their time fighting over time with their son anymore, and honestly, now a days they mostly left it up to him. It normally worked out great that way, Henry making sure he saw both of them for atleast a couple hours everyday, normally walking to Regina's house after school, and having Emma pick him up after she closed up the police station or visa versa. It kept him out of trouble that way, not that Henry was growing up to be a bad teenager per say, but every teen did go through changes and Regina could remember one time specifically Emma had showed up with him and told her that she could not deal with him anymore.<p>

All in all, life in Storybrooke had evened out to be pretty great...but there was still one problem She just couldn't shake. She knew everyone wanted to get home, well, mostly everyone and she had to admit she had started to miss it too. She had been contemplating it for weeks, it had consumed every waking moment of her life, well, it would have if Robin would have let it. Robin was actually the one who had planted the idea in her head that Emma would be able to help her. Actually, it took a few days even for that, Regina just agreeing with him that yes, Emma was in fact growing more powerful, but never in her wildest dreams did Regina think she would actually agree to finding a way home. After a few more days of thought and skirting around Emma, she finally agreed to ask Emma about it during a family dinner. It went better than she expected, Emma agreeing, but that was really the only thing that went right that day. She tried to keep the idea from Henry and Roland, they would be to disappointed if the plan failed (and lets be honest, there was a good chance they would) but now she was thinking that was a mistake.

When Henry showed up back at her house later that night, she had been ecstatic, but when Robin had told her that he wasn't being himself, and then when he pulled what he did with Roland, Regina was at loose ends. Alright, he was mad that Roland was now calling her his mother, a problem she really didn't understand at first, but she felt confident that they could have a conversation about it and everything will be okay. When he ran though, and she found him only to be rejected, it flew her into a flurry of confusion. She would have found him without the potion just fine, she just needed to make sure. Of course she knew to find him at his castle, she was the one who built a new one for him not that long ago.

Things didn't turn out though, and if Regina was just happy that Killian was there and that Henry eventually agreed to talk to him. She was just in the forest eavesdropping for a few seconds, just to make sure he wasn't going to run away from the pirate either. On the way home though, she started to wonder where exactly Emma was, but that thought didn't last for long as she got home and found a finally sleeping Roland and an anxious Robin.

It didn't resurface until Snow had called her frantically the next day ttelling her that there had been an accident and that she needed her to babysit Neal for a little until they knew if Emma was going to be okay. She hastily agreed, Robin having ran out of the house for the same reason, thirty minutes beforehand for the same errand. So somewhere in between her trying to rock Neal to sleep and trying to keep Roland so that Neal could stay asleep, Regina started to wonder if Emma had gotten hurt on purpose to get out of helping her. The thought only becoming more clearer one the Charming's showed up to get Neal and told her what had happened, informing her that their daughter was under a magic ban.

She couldn't be sure though. She had to find out what the blonde was thinking.

* * *

><p>David arrived at the dinner only a few minutes later, parked in front, and pulled the door opened to the very busy dinner. "Its not even lunchtime." He complained to Granny who was behind the counter.<p>

"Close enough." She replied. "Rubys in the back, do you want some coffee?"

David nodded graciously, he must have looked as tired as he felt. "yes please." He sighed, coming around the counter to gain acess to the back room. "Sir refuses to sleep was at it again last night."

Granny chuckled. "One coffee, coming right up." She assured him as he went into the room.

Ruby was sitting on a chair, fiddling with something, and looking exhausted.

Granny didn't make you come down here while you were sleeping, did she?" David asked, pulling out a chair. "because we could always do this later."

Ruby shook her head. "No, I was awake." She murmured. "Just didn't get much sleep because I remembered something."

"You did?" Davids face brightened. "What was it?"

Ruby seemed to sigh. "I was out there alone, David. I remember wanting to take a midnight stroll through the woods. I know that sounds crazy and doesn't make sense since I knew I had to be up for work the next day and it wasn't a full moon or anything. I just...must of fell, hit my head and there was nobody around at that time of night to notice." She ended with a tiny shrug. "I'm sorry. Emma got majorly hurt because of me and you guys thought you were dealing with some psycho killer and here it was just little old me, being dumb."

David looked at the smile she gave him when she finished and could tell it was fake. Which only meant one thing. She was lying. About what specifically, he wasn't sure. Did she remember something and just didn't want to tell him? Or did she not remember a thing and just made up a story to please him? They knew each other well enough that he hoped it wasn't the latter, but then again, he hoped it wasnt either of them. He hoped he was wrong.

Yes, that was it, he was wrong. He nodded and smiled at Granny when she delivered his coffee and tried to ignore his instincts that were screaming at him that he wasn't wrong, but his assumption was dead on. What reason would Ruby have to lie anyways?

He finally returned her smile. "Thanks Ruby, although I do still have to go back out to the scene and look around."

Ruby pushed back her hair. "Like its a crime scene?" She shook her head. "Since when is falling a crime?"

David forced a chuckle. "It's not, its just procedure." He scooted his chair out. "The sooner the better unfortunately, so I'll be seeing you around?"

Ruby nodded and David grabbed his coffee and walked back out to his truck, praying that what he found in the forest wasn't too bad.

* * *

><p>David parked in the same exact spot as yesterday and gathered his things, getting out of the truck. He texted Mary Margaret to tell her that his cell service was going to be spotty for a while and asked if she talked to Emma yet, pulled his jacket tighter, and stepped into the trees. It didn't take long for him to get to the drop off, in fact it took him less time than yesterday as the forest floor wasn't so slippery because the rain stopped sometime overnight. As he suspected, he didn't have cell service, but there was a message there that just simply stated, "Killian said she was okay." He sighed and put the phone in the a zipper pocket and began the careful climb down the drop off. There was still evidence where Emma boot slid making a little rivet down a couple inches, and as David put his own boot into it to make it a easier climb, he quickly realized his daughter was right, that she didn't fall from that far down. It was weird.<p>

But David couldn't really worry about that right now, what done was done. He sighed as he hit the bottom and walked to the spot where Ruby had called out to him. He really didn't have the slightest clue as to what he was specifically looking for and he found himself now wishing he would have stopped at Emma's to bring Killian along because the pirate was good at this kind of stuff. It was to late now, and he crouched down to the ground, to pick up a handful of leaves. Ruby's hands were scraped and she had a few cuts on her face, but other then that she had no injuries that were that bad to produce blood or anything, at least none that would leave blood trails on the leaves. When he realized this, he threw the handful down in frustration and looked back up at the dirt wall, looking fro any divots like where Emma's boot's slid. He didn't see any which was weird. That would have made a bit of sense at least, for Ruby to slid down the wall, messing up her hands, and landing, able to get up and stumble to where they found her.

She would have to have been out for hours though. She said she left the hose around midnight and David and Emma didn't get to the forest until around one in the afternoon. That was a little over twelve hours. She would have had to hit her head pretty hard in order for that to happen there would almost have to be a actual head wound. First off, her head wasn't bleeding at all and secondly, Dr Whale said her head did in fact show some trauma but not much.

It just didn't add up and there was no evidence here to support...well, anything. He sighed, sitting on a rather huge boulder feeling rather defeated. If Emma were here she would have found something already and would be diving in with that uncanny focus of hers. He pulled out his phone, frowning at it, thinking that it might be okay to call her and she could try to help him over the phone, but as he flipped it open, the tiny no service sign popped up. He groaned,, flipping it shut and shoving it back in his pocket as something dark caught his eye.

A dark hazy smoke was just a few feet in front of him. The kind of smoke that did not belong in a forest. As he got up to investagate, it moved, as if it knew it was just seen.

It looked like he was going to be late for dinner after all.


	11. Chapter 1o

As it turned out, Killian was right, Henry didnt get up and make an appearance outside his room until almost an hour an a half later. By that time, the two adults were long done with breakfast, and Emma was trying to get used to her crutches. He stood in the doorway watching her for a few minutes, before getting his own bowl of cereal and coming to sit on the couch with it. "Hand me the remote?" He asked Killian, indicating the remote on the other side of the pirate.

"Nu uh." Emma chuckled. "No game right now. Not while your eating."

"I was just going to put it on the news." He complained innocently.

"Nice try." She rolled her eyes. "We already did that." She limped over to the couch, heaving herself next to him and laying the crutches down on the floor.

Henry nodded. "So, you're feeling better then?"

She nodded, trying to find someplace to put her cast foot. "Yeah, kid, I am, I mostly needed sleep."

He looked at her and quickly got up to move the arm chair around so she could put her feet up on it.

"Thanks, kid." She did just that graciously. "You don't look like you believe me."

He shrugged, spooning cornflakes into his mouth. "I was so scared, mom, you don't even know."

She smiled sadly at him. "You and everyone else." She watched his face closely, and when that didn't seem to help, she quickly said something else. "I know you were kid, I would be too." She looked up, watching Killian quietly get up and disappear down the hall to give them some privacy.

Henry frowned, finishing eating his cereal in silence, and setting the bowl on the floor. He sighed, looking at her.

She chuckled a little. "You dont have to be embarrassed. I know you were scared, trust me, I wouldn't expect anything different."

"You even looked horrible last night." He frowned. "And I wanted to help and stay up in case something happened but all Killian did was get mad, which I understand I guess but..." He trailed off, shrugging.

"Killian was scared too." She whispered. "And you needed some sleep."

He sighed, and eventually nodded. "He really loves you."

Emma nodded slowly, narrowing her eyes. "But you knew that."

Henry nodded. "Yeah, I did."

Emma eyed him and pushed her hair out of her eyes. "Alright, Henry, stop playing the roll of the difficult son and just tell me whats been going on."

"Everything was kind of perfect until Regina had to go ruin everything by telling everyone about the Enchanted Forest." He picked at the cushion of the couch.

"Kind of?" Emma saw a lot of things wrong with that statement and his facial expression, but she choose to start off with that.

Henry nodded. "Things can't always be perfect, you even know that."

Emma sighed. "You got me, kid? Whats not perfect? It wouldn't have to do with Roland calling Regina Mom, would it?"

Henry looked at her, and she thought his expression was slightly scared. "How did you know?"

She laughed softly at his reaction. "Well, I ain't blind or deaf, kid."

"Oh, I thought Killian told you."

She shook her head. "No, actually he hasn't told me anything, did you make a blood pact or something to swear him into silence?" When Henry didn't laugh at that comment, she went on. "I did attend dinner two nights ago though, and I witnessed it first hand."

"Yeah, you yelled at me for it." He told her glumly.

"Henry..." She began, but as soon as she had, there was a knock at the door. She frowned down at her crutches just as Henry bouded up to go answer it, looking through the peephole first.

"Mom?" He muttered, surprised, opening the door and stepping back so that Regina could walk in.

"Hi Henry." She smiled down at him and then looked up at Killian, who came back out of the hall intent on answering the door and Emma. "Can I come in?"

Killian looked at Emma, who shrugged. "You're already in." She shrugged, smiling kindly and causing her son to groan. He wasn't stupid, he knew what was going to happen now.

"Guess so." She smiled and walked in the living room, looking for a spot to sit down.

"Oh!" Emma exclaimed and quickly moved her foot, moving it to the couch.

The older women smiled graciously at her, and took a seat, watching as Henry tried to mumble something and escape behind Killian down the hall. "Henry, I came over here to talk to you too, you can't avoid me forever."

"Wasn't trying too." Henry sighed and went to go sit by Emma's foot. "The whole Moms gaining up on me thing is a low blow though."

Emma chuckled. "Wasn't my idea, promise kid."

"The whole stunt you pulled the other night was a low blow Henry." Regina chastised.

Emma sighed and put up a hand. "We're already passed that part, and up to the part when he was telling me that he's jealous of Roland and yours relationship and I was just about to tell him that he doesn't need to be, he knows you love him."

"I do." Regina nodded. "I am not replacing you with Roland, I would never even think of it."

"If you two are just going to sit here and tell me what you think I already know, this is pointless and I would much rather be playing games." Henry rolled his eyes.

Regina sighed. "Well, do you know?"

"That I shouldn't harp on Roland because hes smaller then me and his real mom disappeared, and I have two of them, who yes, I know love me, but lately the one is spending more and more time around her new family, and the one almost died yesterday, and oh, I forgot, pretty soon, they are both going to be to busy finding a way back to the forest, to even ask me one simple little question!"

Both women flinched back from their sons words. "I didn't almost die," Emma told him quietly, as Regina just blinked.

"I thought all you ever wanted was to go back home with us." Regina was the first one to actually get it. "Horses and swords and...all that fun stuff."

"I do!" Henry answered her, confusing the women even more. "But ever since you said that it might be possible, everybody has been fighting and I kinda hate it." He looked down at the floor. "Snow White is not supposed to be fighting with anyone, much less her daughter! I would rather stay home if this is how it happens."

Both Emma and Regina looked at each other, both of them torn. On one hand, that sentence reminded them both of the old Henry. The Henry pre curse, that wanted so badly for Emma to believe, the one Regina, not hated, but did not support, the thought alone filling her with regret.

"Emma and her mother will work things out, I'm sure." Regina was the first one to talk.

Emma bit her lip to keep from huffing. "Theres a lot going on kid, but we don't mean to let it affect you, and it shouldn't affect your choice either, if you want to go back and see where we are from, then we will, without all the fighting. If you don't, well, then we'll stay here, but no matter what, I have to do this for the others. I'm the savior. Operation Cobra right?"

That got him to grin. "Operation Cobra." He repeated.

"Of course, they're going to be a halt on that specific project right now." She huffed. "I'm on a magic restriction." She looked at Regina.

"I'm aware, and I agree." She nodded. "Trust me, I've been there before, you do not want to push your luck." She bit her tongue on the rest of it, Henry did not need to know that, plus, she had a feeling she was wrong anyways. Emma wouldn't lie to her son.

* * *

><p>"Bloody hell, that thing..." Killian trailed off, trying to catch his breath.<p>

David looked at him, trying to catch his own and cursing the smoke, or whatever the hell it was, for leading them on a wild goose chase and then disappearing. He had called Killian when it started floating towards the town, not wanting it to wreck havoc on the people and not being able to reach Regina on her cell. By the time Killian had caught it though, it went back hehind the trees led them around the paths for hours, like a criminal running until it seemed to have enough and disappeared. "Have you seen anything like that before?" David flipped open his phone to see if Regina had returned his call. She hadn't.

"I would have told you if I had." Killian shook his head. "Although it eerily reminds me of Pan's shadow and thats something I do not like at all."

"Me neither." David agreed, trying not to shiver. "I called Regina to see if she could come out, but she isn't answering. Want to stop by the merry men's camp with me to if shes there? Her cell might not have service."

"Shes not there." Killian almost chuckled. "She's at the apartment with Henry and Emma, trying to get through the lad's issue's, in fact I'll be surprised if any one of them heard me left, which in Emma's case is good, she would have wanted to follow."

"Oh, well, in that case...it can wait." David sighed. Theses situations came up quite often, his family or the town? And despite the fact of having to make them quite often, it never got any easier.

"Are we sure about that mate?" Killian eyed the spot where the mist disapeared suspiciously. "The night before last it was Ruby, who is it going to take tonight? Snow? Emma? Henry? Granny?"

"We don't even know if they are connected." David responded.

"Oh, trust me, they are." Killian took out his phone to call Regina again, but this time, it went straight to voicemail. "Bloody hell, whats with the women in your family and refusal to answer their phones?" He snapped it shut and started walking briskly away.

"Where are you going?" David asked, following him.

"To the last person I want to ask, but we're out of options." Killian answered, arriving at Davids truck and grabbing the door handle.

* * *

><p>The two men arrived at the pawnshop within minutes, jumping out of the truck, and opening the door in a rush. Belle was the only one hunched over the counter, like she always was, leafing through a book. Killian gave her a sympathetic glance, as he walked up to her knowing that both him and Emma especially had been avoiding her, even still, very uncomfortable with the situation surrounding her and Rumplestiltskin. "Belle." He said in greeting, causing her to look up and smile at them.<p>

"Killian, David." She shut her book. "I heard about Emma, is she alright?"

"Shes on the mend." Killian assured her. "But now we have a slightly bigger problem that we are hoping the crocodile us with. Is he around?"

Belle seemed surprised for a moment, and then bit her lip, shaking her head. "Sorry, but he's...he doesn't want to be bothered." She whispered, looking desperate.

David nodded understandingly. "Thats alright, we thought we would take the chance."

Bella nodded, and glanced at the back of the shop and then back at them. "Maybe I can help?" She asked hopefully.

"Maybe." David stepped up to the counter to glance at the book she was reading. "See, we were investigating the place we found Ruby yesterday and this...smoke came and started hovering. But as soon as I went to see about it, it started to move as if it was running, and it played that game with us all afternoon, do you have any clue as to what it might have been?"

Belle's eyes narrowed so that you could see the gears working in her head. "I-I'm not sure." She said, talking the book she was previously reading off the counter and going to go in the back. "Can you two wait one minute?"

Killian and David nodded, and proceeded to pace around the shop, waiting until she came back out. When she did, she had a thicker book in her hands that she sat down on the counter and started turning the pages. "We are lucky I had this here." She said, as she flipped more pages.

"Whats this exactly?" Killian asked, trying to peer over at it.

"A book Rumple gave me." Belle explained. "It doesn't have every magical creature out there, but it just might have your smoke in here somewhere."

Just then, David cell phone rang. "Yeah?" He answered and then listened for a while, nodding. "Alright, we'll be there." He sighed, shutting his phone. "Belle, can you keep looking for us, we have to run."

She nodded. "Of course, I"ll call if I find anything."

He barely got out a thank you before he was pulling Killian out the door and back into the truck, starting up the engine. "That was Robin, apparently our smoke has made a sudden reappearance in the camp."

"You told Robin?" Killian looked at him weird.

"About the smoke specifically? No, but he is smart and that means whatever it is must have done something to make him suspicious."

Killian heaved a sigh as David navigated the truck , this time into the trees a few feet, jumping out and taking off running for the third time that day. By the time Killian caught up to the camp, Robin was already standing there, holding a frightened looking Roland explaining something to David in a low voice.

"Did the vile creature try to go after the boy?" The pirate asked the nearest man, who just so happened to be Little John.

John shook his head. "No."

Killian looked at him. "Then why is he so upset?"

"Because Roland walked into the creature going after me." He shivered.

Killian looked at him weird. "I was taking a nap in the tent before we went fishing, when the others were ready, I told Roland to come wake me up, well, he did, but apparently he did just in time."

Killian narrowed his eyes. "So Roland so the smoke?"

Little John frowned. "Thats the thing, he said a shadowy mad was leaning over me, and when he screamed, alerting Robin, the man turned into smoke."

"Because he knew he just got caught." Killian glanced over at David, knowing Robin was telling him the same tale.

Little John nodded. "I remember feeling so cold, but I cant remember if it was in my dream or physically and..." He seemed like he wanted to say more, but he quickly cut off, shivering. "What is this thing?" He then asked, just assuming it was te same thing that got Ruby.

"Thats what we are trying to find out." He answered.

**A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long guys and is rather short! next chapter I can promise you will find out exactly what happened to Ruby and who did it. Stay tuned :)**


	12. Chapter 11

David ordered the Merry Men out of the forest. He told them to go to Grannys or wherever they pleased, he just wanted nobody in the forest. After they all left, he asked Robin to try to get a hold of Regina, which he did, and told her to come meet them. Killian took the shaking toddler while Robin was on the phone, and tried to calm him down. It worked a little, but when he gave the boy back, suggesting that they go to the apartment, to see what Emma and Henry could do for him.

He nodded his thanks, and left. David was on the phone with Snow, so he slid his phone out of his pocket to call Emma, but then thought against it. He couldn't lie to her, and besides, Regina was on her way and would give him an update. Just as he was about to put his phone safely away, it started to ring, and the name Belle came across the screen. He glanced at david, still pacing and sounding like he was talking to his son and then flipped the phone open. "Hello?"

"Killian, it's Belle, I tried David, but got call waiting." She responded.

"He's on the phone with his family, what did you find?" He walked a few paces away from David and stood between two trees, looking around.

"I found what you might be describing." there was sounds of pages flipping in the background. "Its called a Dreamcatcher. Its half man, half monster. It doesn't need sleep but thats only because it preys off of other living things sleep. It seeks them out and suctions the sleep out of there bodies, making them start to sleepwalk in a sense. It's the period of time when the monster is draining them. During that time, the monster can control them, to make them do...well, the possibilities are endless, and once the creature is done with them, it leaves the victim with no recollection of the incident that just occurred. They will just suddenly wake up finding themselves in odd places like-"

"The Forest." Killian cut her off.

"Exactly." Belle nodded and flipped another page. "It has all the traits you two told me about, the smoke, everything."

"Alright." Killian sighed, glancing at David again who was off the phone. "Thanks Belle, now all we need to do is find the bloody thing, does that book of you tell us how to kill it by any chance?"

Belle paused for a moment. "Sorry, no, but I'm trying to get Rumple to talk to me so I'll call you back if I find out."

Killian thanked her and hung up, closing the phone and turning back to David. "Ever heard of a Dreamcatcher, Mate?"

David raise an eyebrow. "Something tells me we are not talking about the netted things with beads."

Killian gave him a strange look.

"Nevermind." David sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Its been a long day."

"Well, something tells me its going to get even longer." Regina's voice spoke from behind them. "What exactly is going on?

* * *

><p>Just a couple minutes after Regina had left, another knock sounded at the door. Emma sighed, "I'll get it Henry, I have to get up anyways." She grabbed her crutches and got up, hobbling to the door and opening it.<p>

"Emma." Robin smiled in greeting, clutching Roland in his arms who had his face buried in his neck. "Regina and Killian told me you and Henry would be more than willing to spend an afternoon with us?"

Emma smiled and hopped backwards a few paces. "They were right." She spotted Rolands frown and frowned herself, rubbing his back. "What's wrong buddy?"

"He had a run in with the villain your father is trying to catch." Robin explained softly.

Emma frowned. "The one I should be helping with."

Robin sighed. "They also told me not to let you talk me into letting you go help so dont even try."

Emma sighed. "Of course they would. Well, come on in, I have to go to the bathroom, but I will be back." She turned herself around and went down the hall.

Robin closed the door behind him and went to to go sit with the his little boy on the couch. "Hi Henry." He greeted.

"Hey." He uncomfortably responded and hung his head. "I'm sorry for the way I acted the other night."

Robin smiled kindly at him. "Thats quite alright, Henry, you weren't yourself, and it was quite a night, but maybe you need to talk to Roland about it."

Henry frowned. "Hey Ro? You can sleep in my bed anytime you want."

Robin smiled as Emma came out from the hall and Roland just snuggled in Robins shirt further.

"Its much more than that, and you know it, Henry." Emma sat herself in a chair.

"Emma, I got it." Robin held his hand up. "Henry, I am personally will not allow Regina to forget about you because she is to wrapped up in us."

Henry bit his lip and nodded. "Alright." He easily agreed.

At Regina's name, Roland picked his head up sleepily. "Momma?"

Robin chuckled and rubbed his back. "We'll see her later."

Rolands lip trembled, which Emma immediately noticed. "Hey now, Ro, you're at my house. Auntie Emma's."

He peered at her and then back at Robin. "Why we here?" He asked him.

"Because your daddy got sent to babysit me." Emma muttered under her breath which she thought was a much more accurate answer then the one Robin actually gave.

"Where's Killan?" Roland perked up a little, not being able to say the pirates name right.

"At work." Emma rolled her eyes slightly at her explanation. "He'll be back later and then you guys can play pirates, okay?" She was fairly confident that was the only reason Roland liked coming over to the apartment, because of Killian's willingness to play pirates with him. He even bought Roland a special eyepatch that the boy carried everywhere.

"Will you make supper?" Roland asked her, still on Robins shoulder.

"Sure thing, bud." Emma smiled softly at him. "Actually if you want, You, me and Henry can hang out here and watch movies while your papa goes and helps Killian and Momma so that they can get done faster."

Roland seemed to think about this as Robin looked down at him. "Okay." he nodded eventually, unable to resist movies (his new favorite thing from this world)

"Are you sure, Emma, I mean with your leg and all..." Robin frowned.

"Robin, if I can't take care of a damn villain, what I was brought to this town to do, I might as well look after two rugrats."

Robin frowned. "Language."

"Two of my favorite rugrats." she tried to disguise her cursing as she opened her arms out for Roland who almost immediately got up off of Robin and ran into her arms. He gave her casted foot a wide berth, looking at it as if it was some kind of alien or something,

"It's just my foot." Emma explained, wriggling it a bit. "Its just in this so that it can heal."

Roland sat in her lap, staring down at it.

Robin chuckled and got up, ruffling his hair. "Okay, buddy, I'm going to go then, I'll see you later alright?"

The little boy barely took his eyes off of Emma's foot, leaning back into her chest. "Okay, Papa, I'll have fun!"

Robin laughed. "I know you will." He turned to Emma. "Not too many movies," he warned, not fully warmed up to modern technology yet. "And you need to call one of us if you are having problems with anything, and I mean that."

"It's not like I'm useless." Henry grumbled from behind him.

Emma rolled her eyes at her son. "Not a lot of movies, calls, and a nutricious dinner, got it," she smiled. "Good luck."

Robin sighed. "By the looks of it, we'll need it."

Emma sighed and frowned, watching him walk out the door, wishing with all her might that she could have wnet and followed him. "Okay, Bud, what movie are we going to watch?" She asked Roland, bouncing him slightly. "We can watch the one about the dogs...or the one about the elephant..."

"Or he can pick." Henry smiled and went down to get a hanfull of Disney Dvd's and brought them up to them.

Roland smiled happily and started going through the brightly colored titles. Finally he settled on one and held it out to Henry who took it and frowned down at the title. He frowned slightly and showed the ver to Emma. "Make him pick another." Emma softly told him. "I dont even know why we still have that."

Henry shrugged. "Nah, it's fine, Disney is really different from real life." He smiled at Roland as he put the Dvd in the player. "I'll go make some popcorn."

"Pop! Pop!" Roland yelled happily, snuggling into Emma.

* * *

><p>"A Dreamcatcher." Regina repeated, sighing and running a hand across her hair to catch the flyaways, making it obvious she got there in a hurry.<p>

"Yeah." David confirmed. "Ever heard of it?"

"Unfortunately yes." She frowned. "I never dealt with one though, just heard the stories. They are supposed to be one of the most blood curdling creatures of our world"

Killian rolled his eyes. "Surprising that you never got your hands on one then."

Regina rolled her eyes. "They are very hard to get a hold of and aren't very friendly to anyone, so, my dear pirate, how was I supposed to accomplish it?"

Killian shrugged. "The same thing you accomplished everything else?"

David sighed. "Would you two stop it? It already got Ruby and tried to get Little John and Roland, we don't need it to get anyone else."

Regina sighed and walked a few paces, frowning.

Killian watched her retreating with a sigh. "Well, what do you expect us to do mate? The crocodile is not talking and Regina obviously has no idea's. Are we supposed to keep the whole town up forever until the thing runs out of energy and dies on its own?"

At first the look that David gave him looked like he was actually contemplating the idea. "Of course not, that would be insane." He glanced at Regina as if for her to agree.

"They are attracted to flames." She supplied, neither agreeing or disagreeing to David's statement. " Other than sleeping people of coarse. Which is why it attacked the camp and Ruby must have had a candle or something to guide her way."

"So we get a candle and wait?" Robin arrived and came up behind his love. When she turned around to shoot him a look, he held his hands up. "Emma is fine, shes watching movies with the boys and shes not going to just leave Roland to his own devices."

Killian sighed just imagining the antics Roland would pull that would stint his loves recovery, but Regina cut him off with a glare.

"Good." She responded to Robin with a nod. "We'll need all the help we can get...you can be the bait, Robin."

Robin looked at her questionally.

"Thats true love at its finest." Killian gave one of his eyerolls and sarcastic smiles.

"No, shes right, we need to take care of this quickly and the only way to do that is to capture it. If one of us has to sleep with a fire while the other keep watch, well, thats a small price to pay." David sighed, surveying what was left of the camps fire that was previously roaring.

Robin nodded. "It's alright, I'll do it." He was already taking the bow and quivers off his back and handing them to Regina.

"And we really think this will work?" Killian still looked quite unsure and but he bent down to strike the fire back up anyways.

"Its worth a try." Regina dropped more sticks onto the pit. "Do you have any other brilliant ideas?"

"Figuring out how to kill it first maybe?"

Regina frowned. "We have no time to wait for that insane imp to decide to talk! We're here now, and we're doing it!"

* * *

><p>Snow smiled at the waitress behind the counter as she pushed baby Neal's stroller in and went to go find a booth. David had called and said that he wasn't going to be home for dinner, and she didn't have enough energy to cook something for later, so this became the only option. She thought about going to check up on Emma, which is what she normally would have done, but she just didn't want to stint her recovery process by making her even more upset.<p>

The blonde waitress came over and took her order and she rocked her son. "Rubys not back working yet?" Snow asked as she ordered a piece of lasanga and some coffee.

The waitress shook her head. "I've been working all day, Ruby tried to come back around lunchtime I guess, but something happened and Granny sent her back home to rest."

Snow nodded, and smiled sadly. "I hope she's alright."

The waitress frowned, seeming concerned. "Has your husband found out what happened yet? People are fearing that we're under attack by a villain again."

Snow sighed, trying to hide what she knew. "No, not yet, but hes working furiously too, don't worry, and tell anyone you overhear not to worry either."

The girl nodded, and after a quick smile at the baby, went into the kitchen to get her order.

Snow frowned, and looked around the diner wondering if the right thing to do was to hide what was really going on or not.

* * *

><p>"Are we still sure this plan is going to work?"<p>

There was a sigh. "Just give it time."

It had been an hour since Robin had fallen asleep inside of the tent, talking to Regina. She had smiled and quietly slipped out, assuring everyone that he was fast asleep. After that, they all had been sitting on tree stumps, and feeding wood to the fire.

"How much longer?" Killian frowned. "At some point Emma is going to get worried and start bugging us and I'm sure if she gets desperate enough, Henry will start looking like the best baby sitter for a four year old."

"If you are worried about Miss Swan, call her." Regina sighed.

"And take the chance of missing the creature? I dont think so." Killian shook his head.

"Then please, stop complaining."

David sighed, He knew full well Killian was wound up tight with worry for Emma, but that did not give the two of them to act this way. "Are we sure this Dreamcatcher will come back? I mean, maybe it did get some of Little Johns energy, maybe it's not one of those creatures that aren't greedy?"

"Oh, it's greedy, trust me." Regina rolled her eyes again. "We just have to be patient. Killian, do us all a favor and just call Emma. I'm sure David is quite worried about her too."

Killian bit his lip, knowing that she was right and dug out his phone out of his pocket, only to find it dead. "Bloody thing." He muttered and looked up only to find Regina offering her phone. The pirate graciously took it and found Emma's number, listening to it ring three times before she picked up, sounding sleepy.

"Regina?" She asked.

Killian chuckled. "Not quite, love."

"Killian!" She sounded a bit more surprised and awake. "You're still with Regina?"

"And your father." He rolled his eyes slightly at her voice. "We're doing a stake out of sorts, you would love it."

"I should be there." She sighed as the sounds of shuffling could be heard in the background.

"Dont even start, Swan. How are the lad's?"

Emma huffed, annoyed, as Killian knew that she was, bu she chuckled a little as she answered. "They are both passed out. I'm not sure if it was from the movie, the pizza I ordered, or the fact that Henry had to stand in as the pirate captain since you weren't here."

Killian laughed. "Well, I do hope the lad was a half way decent captain."

"I'm not sure." Emma admitted. "I took my pain meds and fell asleep for a while, your call woke me up and they were both passed out on the couch already."

"It must have been a quiet game of pirates then." Killian chuckled. "But other then that, everything is good?"

Emma nodded, even though he couldn't see. "Yeah, all good." She promised.

"Alright, I should be home soon, call if you need anything love."

After Emma promised that she would, he hung up and gave the phone back to Regina. "So...where could this creature be that its not coming, It could have found another victim by now."

David frowned, knowing the possibility was very real.

"Doubtful." Regina assured the men. "Its barely after super time, I dont think anyones going to bed yet, and if they are sleeping, according to what happened to Ruby, we would run into them out here anyways."

As soon as she said it, Killian cussed.

Regina and David raised an eyebrow.

"I know of three people that were just sleeping."

**A/N: Sorry this chapter took for long and is so short guys! I hope you loved it anyways! Thanks for all who reviewed, followed and favorited! Next update soon!**


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